Her Story
by Cho 17
Summary: REVISED!AU. Caught in a web of lies and deceptions, Kairi must find out how to deal with all the drama going on around her while trying to remain outside of the world she once desperately wanted to belong to. Over 15,000 hits already! Tankies! :P
1. Chapter 1

_**Her Story**_

~*~Disclaimer~*~ I don't own Kingdom Hearts or any Kingdom Heart's character, hence the reason I'm on anyway. I'm not clever enough to come up with anything that good but Square has. So all rights to Kingdom Hearts belong to them.

_**Chapter 1: Secrets Deteriorate the Conscience**_

The music was blasting, the band was hype, and the people were working up a sweat as they moved their bodies around in rhythmic synchronization with the beat of the music. During this cacophony of heathenish celebration, I stood on the sidelines as a bystander looking into a world where I didn't seem to fit in. Once or twice someone asked for a dance, but I turned him down. I just didn't see how I could fit into that picture, and more importantly, I didn't want to disrupt the natural order of things by trying to. After all, I was the odd ball out, which meant that I had no right being there.

"Gosh, look at Kairi. What is she doing standing all alone like that?" I cocked my head a little and listened to my sister's friend, Larxene, bad mouth my unfitting existence within their world. The two of them weren't standing too far off, just at the other end of the snack table. Unlike me they could mingle and not be persecuted about it and were only caught standing alone in this instant because they had worn themselves out with their dancing. Of course soda, chips, and dip weren't very satisfying refreshments so I doubted that they'd find anything to suffice their growing fatigue. I couldn't help but wish for that very thing though because maybe then Namine would finally take me home. In answer to Larxene's statement, my sister gingerly whipped some hair back from out of her face and shrugged.

"She doesn't party. It's not her thing," she told. She looked at the soda as though she was debating whether or not to drink one. I knew she wouldn't. Soda made her break out, and if there was one thing my sister couldn't nor wouldn't tolerate, it was a face full of oil filled bumps. Larxene carefully picked up a Mountain Dew.

"Gross. Why isn't there any water," she asked. She seemed to have dropped the topic about me after that.

"I don't know," my sister started, "but it's hot as hell in here and I'm tired."

"Ready to go?"

"...It's still early though… Well, I know Kairi's dying to get outta here by now. Yeah. Let's get the boys and leave." I smiled subconsciously, happy that the little diva decided to grant me my freedom. Soon the two were maneuvering through the crowd until they collected their prizes and made their ways to the front door. I looked on with anxiousness. Surely my sister didn't expect me to try and walk my way out through the heavy mass of sweating, hormone driven teenagers, did she? My nerves died down as my savior came to take me away from the damned place.

"Hey Kairi, we're leaving ya know. Or did you want to stay and keep the wall company?" A grin spread across Sora's face as he spoke and I rolled my eyes out of habit.

"Oh be quiet. I've been ready to go since the moment I walked in here. I can't believe all that I had to endure!"

"Oh spare me the tale drama queen." He pulled me by the arm and we made our way through the ocean of crazed monsters, and easily found the safety of the outside world through the front door. My sister stood by Riku's car, and the two of them were talking in whispers. I tried to understand why she felt like she could openly flirt with her boyfriend's best friend. I mean, if she meant to be discreet, she was failing horribly.

"What'd I miss," Sora questioned. He took his place at my sister's side and pecked her lightly on the cheek. I could have yakked. He didn't see her cringe? He was honestly oblivious to Namine and Riku's sexcapades!? As nice as Sora was, he could be too stupidly naive at times so much so that I felt extremely guilty for standing there quietly. Maybe her discreetness wasn't as bad as I thought, but why did I feel like I was apart of it?

"Nothing really. Man I'm beat," Namine mumbled and yawned for emphasis to her point. Sora pulled her close and smiled.

"Oh come on Namine, the night's still young…," he said as he suggestively brushed his lips against her earlobe. A smile broke the weatherworn look on my sister's face, but only for a second.

"Well, I must be getting old then because I really want to go to sleep. Besides, I've tortured Kairi enough already…" Sora looked at me then and I shrunk away from the couple. I was always the liability; I was always used as a good excuse for my sister.

"…Fine. I get the hint. Geez." He pulled away from her abruptly and I saw Riku grin.

"So, I'll be taking you guys home then?" he asked.

"Yea. I'll take Sora home since he's on the way," Larxene chimed in. I saw Namine tensed up a little from the suggestion. Unlike Sora, my sis' knew how to spot a problem. Larxene's attraction for Sora was no secret.

"No. Sora can ride with us," she stated, "or you could take us home instead Larxene."

"… Whatever."

"No. Let me take you and Kairi home. Larxene and Sora will be fine," Riku said.

"Yea, give me _some_ credit Namine," Larxene mumbled. Namine sighed in defeat and gathered herself in the front seat of Riku's car. She waved out the window to Sora who waved back and blew a kiss. We all then drove away.

----

"Do you want me to come up?" Riku inquired. We were at my house now. The majority of the ride had been quiet, but now Riku was looking at Namine the way he always did when he got that itch in his pants. She sighed tiredly.

"I dunno… My parents aren't home yet but…"

"You're tired," he finished for her, "Well, I get it. Let me walk you to the door at least."

"…Okay." They both got out of the car and made their ways to the front door. I solemnly followed behind them. I already knew that she'd invite him in and they'd keep me up all night with their 'love making'. I could have slapped Namine for being such a slut if I was in a place to judge her for that kind of behavior, but I wasn't. It was her business. I waited patiently as they stopped in front of the door staring at one another hungrily.

"Well, g'night," Riku said. He kissed her lightly on the lips and Namine kissed him back.

"Hm… yeah…"

"It _is_ late… maybe… maybe I should… I should stay…"

"No Riku. No. We said we'd stop. It's not fair to Sora," Namine claimed while at the same time licking Riku's ear seductively. He moaned a little and then began trailing peppery kisses along her jaw-line until he traveled all the way down her neck.

"That's what you said before… And I ended up in your room…"

"But… but this time's different. I mean it… This time…"

"Mm hm. I know… You said that too."

"Oh Riku." His hands began to roam around her body groping her in inappropriate places (to me anyway) and she just moaned and beckoned him with similar actions of her own.

"Let me in...," he breathed. Namine didn't need to be told twice. The door finally opened and they practically ran to her room in a frenzied passion. I sighed a little and closed the door behind me. I decided that I wouldn't go to my room. It was right next door to Namine's.

I used to feel awkward around them when I found out about them sleeping together, on accident, a few months ago. When I opened the door to her room (which was unlocked by the way), they were all twisted together in the nude. I knew already that Namine was having sex, that she was no virgin, but I didn't know she would sleep with her boyfriend's best friend. After I left she came to me red-faced and ashamed begging me to not tell Sora. I felt so strange. If it was one thing I didn't want my sister to confide in me about it was her being promiscuous.

After I got myself comfortable on the sofa, I thought to myself about how horrible I felt for not telling Sora about his friend and Namine. Then I thought about how I didn't want to betray my sister's trust by telling him. I kept thinking that if I gave her space then maybe she'd tell him already but no. Then as time passed and it became regular to find Riku at my house with Namine, I didn't think much about it until I saw Sora. He was such a nice guy, so sweet, funny, friendly, and talented. He and Namine had dated since middle school. He became like a brother to me. And as important as he was to Namine, I couldn't help but wonder how she could do that to him. It made me angry and I figured out some kind of way to tell him, but always lost the nerve because Namine already knew she was wrong. That's why she didn't want him knowing.

As they proceeded to do 'it' upstairs, I felt my conscience eat away at me and I hated myself. Then I wondered if the reason for me not being able to fit in at the party was the fact that I possessed a conscience. I mean, how many of those other party dwellers held depraving secrets that devoured him or her clean of his or her consciences? Maybe that's why the people at that party got along so well. That being they hadn't a care in the world.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter 2: Misplaced Aggression**_

My mom woke me up for school the next morning and I rushed so as not to be late. Namine had gotten a ride with Riku so when Sora came to the door as I was storming out, I was surprised. He didn't seem to sense my foul mood though and greeted me friendly.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey… Namine's already gone," I told, and as an afterthought I added, "with Riku."

"I know. I asked him to pick her up. My car's still in the shop."

"So… why are you here then?"

"I uh… Does it always have to be about Namine when I come over?"

"Uh. Yeah. What other reason could you possibly have for being here?" Sora smiled coyly and said, "Maybe I want to see you." I rolled my eyes, but his joke set my heart aflutter. When he saw that I wasn't falling for his prank, Sora shrugged. He gave in and told me his real reason for the unexpected visit.

"Fine. I just wanted to talk to you about her." My heart began to beat against my chest forcefully and I started to feel sick. The sunny, autumn morning seemed glum.

"Uh well… Come on. I don't want to be late," I said and started down the street. I saw my mother in her car going to work and I hadn't even noticed her leave the house. Sora walked beside me in silence and I had to assume that it was going to be a touchy subject. Maybe he did know about Namine and Riku already and I just hadn't given him enough credit. I absentmindedly focused my attention on the fallen tree leaves that littered the ground.

"… Namine's bored with me huh?" Sora asked suddenly; however, his tone wasn't questioning. It seemed more as though he knew the answer already and was relaying the information to me. I was silent. Ok… So maybe he didn't know after all…

"I mean… I guess lately I've been feeling like I haven't been making her happy. Like I've been doing the same things and they aren't good enough anymore. Has something been happening with her?" I looked at some of the trees whose leaves had all fallen off and were left bare as I tried to find some loophole. I knew what was going on and I also knew that it wasn't my place to tell him about it. His openness just left me feeling so bare, as though he could see all my secrets.

"Kairi?" His tone changed from being upbeat to uncertainty. I was forced to look into his cerulean eyes that were full of questioning. I cursed his stupidity. Why did he have to ask _me_ about it?

"Uh… just ask her yourself," I said. I tried to sound normal so I could get rid of the panic I had caused with my silence. Unfortunately Sora (being the people person that he is) read my false tone.

"She won't tell me and you know something. Tell me Kairi. Please?" My heart started beating real fast again and I redirected my gaze.

"You know… this is really unfair. You're putting me in an uncomfortable position Sora… It's just Namine… Can't you just ask _her_ about it?" My voice cracked a little. My eyes were warm and I couldn't believe I was about to cry over something so trivial. Sora knew it was something bad now, and that was enough. I'd done my part, but still I hoped that the whole thing wouldn't hurt either of them as much as I knew it most likely would. A slight breeze blew and lifted the dead leaves off the ground. I felt like I owed him something. He didn't deserve what Namine was giving him. My hand found his and I said, "… I'm sorry…" Sora squeezed my hand a little before letting go.

At school, Sora was avoiding Namine and she seemed hurt. She tried to talk to him at times, but he openly ignored her. I felt guilty, so I avoided both of them. My best friend, Selphie, watched us and looked as though she was watching a bunch of crazy alien people.

"What's going on? Did someone pee in the shower and someone else trip in it?" We were at lunch, and Selphie took this time (almost the end of the day now) to finally confront me about the subject. I couldn't help smiling happily at her little expressionism despite how crappy I felt. I loved her for that kind of stuff. She always knew how to cheer me up.

"Sora's mad at Namine because I sorta led him on about something…," I admitted. Selphie took a bite of her sandwich and while she was still chewing asked, "Something like what? It can't be that ol' boy doesn't know how girl gets passed around more than a pack of cigarettes can it? Man, he's so cute and good at everything he does! What's her problem? If they break up I'll be the first to pick up the pieces!"

"Yea right. If you ever get off of your obsession over Tidus," I said giggling. Selphie blushed.

"I'm not obsessed! I can give him up in a heart beat if it was for some guy like Sora! You're just mad because you don't have anyone to love."

"I love you. And Sora and Namine. That's why I hate this. I've been feeling nauseated all day… How do I fix this?"

"You didn't break anything so there's nothing for you to fix. It's your sister's fault so let her handle it. And _if_ they do split, we know they can't blame you." She finished off her sandwich and we both got up to throw away our trash. I wanted to believe Selphie and feel better, but wasn't it true that I was as deep in this as all of the people involved because I was keeping secrets as well? I hated the idea of them splitting. They'd been together for too long and I didn't want to lose Sora. He was a valuable friend. Priceless. If he found out that I was involved too, would he hate me as much as he would hate Namine? Would she blame me if they broke-up because of our conversation earlier? My stomach hurt really badly so I ditched Selphie and went to the bathroom.

----

My guts literally spilled out into the toilet bowl until I felt totally empty. The emptiness didn't clear my mind though. It was still full to bursting with my dilemma. I felt like crying those tears that I had held back earlier while I was talking to Sora, but someone came in and I stopped myself.

"Ew! It stinks in here!" I heard one of the people say.

"So what? This is as private as we're gonna get in this hellhole," the other claimed. She locked the door and I gulped nervously. A smell that was kind of sweet and kind of foul began to spread throughout the room and I knew they were smoking. I tried to hold my breath but I got a big whiff of my own throw up and almost gagged.

"Quick! Open up that window!" The window was opened no later than the words were said and a giant gust of autumn air blew.

"Whoa… Is it gonna rain?"

"Who knows? Now, do you feel better?"

"Uh. Yeah actually. This stuff really works!"

"No shit. Now spill it. What's been gnawing mercilessly at your ass all day?" There was silence and I thought they found out that I was in there. I didn't think I was wrong for being there; it was a public place after all. It was just that this girl was about to tell her friend something in earnest and I was there pretending I wasn't and I was gonna hear her tell it all! I began to feel guilty again.

"Well, you know Roxas right?"

"Sora's cousin? Ain't he your boy toy? The one that pulled the fire alarm last year?"

"Well…yea…"

"What a dumbass."

"Hey! I admit that it was a little childish but it was also funny as hell!" I smiled at the memory. Roxas was the complete opposite of Sora for being a blood relative. He was a trouble maker who looked for all kinds of ways to attract negative attention to himself. Last year he pulled the fire alarm so he could leave school and go to a concert. Unfortunately he was caught and currently "volunteers" at the old folk's home for a year's worth of community service. I never talked to him though; not in the entire time that I've known him which is the same amount of time as I've known Sora.

"Yea… yea. What is it about the little moron that has got you all wishy washy?" I listened a little more intently then I should have. It wasn't my business after all.

"Well… yesterday we went to the park and he was drawing graffiti on the park ranger's hut. He was saying some naughty things about his cousin's girlfriend on there and I told him to stop it. He said 'shut-up before you get us caught'."

"Hm. Go on."

"I told him that it wasn't _us_ doing anything to get caught and that if _he_ was caught it was his own fault. He was like 'I wouldn't get caught if you would shut the hell up'. Rude huh?"

"Very."

"So I told him he was being a bastard and that he shouldn't be writing anything about someone else. Then you know what he did? He erased Namine's name and put Olette on there instead!"

"No."

"_Yes_. And he wrote 'clueless bitch' in big capitalized letters. I asked him why he was such a dick and he said it was because that's how I liked it and I told him no it wasn't but he insisted and-

"Can we speed this up?"

"Anyway, we had another fight and I was going to apologize to him today but… but…" I heard faint sniffling sounds and I only assumed that Olette had started crying.

"Spit it out!"

"I caught him making out with Yuffie! That slutty little heifer! And… and… I went ahead and made out with Hayner!"

"Oh shit. You didn't."

"I did. But… but… Hayner…"

"Yes?" There was more silence and then Olette erupted into big fits of tears and sniffles. Her friend, who I'm guessing is Fujin because she's one of the only girls Olette ever hangs out with, lit another joint.

"Now, what'd he do?" Fujin asked slowly. Olette was quiet and I wondered what it was that could make her act like that. Olette was very smart, an honor roll student. She was a little mixed up with the media's portrayal of the world though; consequently, she was a follower who hung out with the wrong people (in my opinion anyway), but she was always happy and bright. I never knew this side of her.

"Well… he… he started getting too caught up into it and… and… he… raped me." I gasped at the same time Fujin had so they were still oblivious to my presence. I half expected Olette to break down again but surprisingly she laughed instead. I failed to find the humor in it.

"To think… to think I was trying to hurt Roxas. But I was the one who got screwed twice over… I wanted to tell him I'd made out with his best friend to hurt his feelings… but now I can't tell him anything because I'm embarrassed and he might not want me anymore… Plus Hayner-''

"I'll beat his ass."

"Huh?"

"I'll beat his ass beyond recognition then I'll cut off his testicles, make him eat them, and then I'll throw him down a cliff for wild animals to eat on so no one will ever find out…"

"Fuu. This is no time to joke around."

"I'm not fucking kidding! We'll kill the bastard and that way it never happened. Roxas won't hate you. And everything's back to normal."

"Kill him? But…"

"He fucking _raped_ you Olette! What the hell?? He asked for it! After he fucking touched you his tombstone was carved! Stop being a pussy!"

"That's why I didn't want to tell you! You're always jumping off the deep end! Always going too far! Just stop! We're not killing him!"

"Then what do we do?! I want to see some fucking justice!" There was silence once again. A chill crawled down my spine and I shivered a little. I forgot the window was still opened and so I tried to get myself in a more comfortable position. I was so caught up in Olette's story that I didn't pay much attention to my obvious cramped position inside the cubicle. I forgot that I was supposed to remain absolutely silent…

"We do nothing," I heard Olette say with a firm, finalizing voice.

"Olette!! Be reasonable!"

"Nothing Fuu!" Olette's loud voice startled me and so I accidentally pulled down on the handle and flushed the toilet. My heart started beating real fast and butterflies fluttered around mercilessly in my stomach.

"Oh. Shit," Olette swore. Before I had time to react, Fujin's boots appeared beneath my stall and suddenly the door was kicked open. I screamed.

"What the…! Who the hell are you? Come on, get outta there!" Fujin grabbed me by the arm and pulled me from the stall very forcefully. I fell against the sink and bumped my head. The pain was excruciating, but Fujin didn't think that it was enough. She pulled me by the hair and began to repeatedly bang my head against the sink. I felt like my skull was going to crack.

"Stop Fuu" and Fujin did, but not before throwing me up against the wall roughly. As I tried to catch my bearings, Olette hovered over me with her arms crossed and a hateful look on her face. I kept looking at her face. All that hatred was directed to me? It was for me? But I struggled with why that was. Given, I knew that they didn't want anyone hearing them and I didn't really want to hear them. So why did she hate me for being in the wrong place at the wrong time?

"What'd you hear?" I began to feel dizzy and something began trailing down the side of my face.

"Wh… what?"

"Exactly. You didn't hear anything. We were never here. And guess what else. If you ever tell anyone else about this, I'll find you and hurt you worse than what just went down in here today. Understand?" I touched my cheek and looked at my hand. Blood.

"But… Olette…," I stammered clumsily.

"Understand?" She asked again and Fujin kicked me in the gut. I gasped as the air escaped from my lungs and I doubled over.

"I think she's got the picture Fuu, thanks. Am I right?" Not wanting to experience any more than necessary pain for one day, I nodded my head pathetically, which seemed to satisfy her.

"Good." They began to leave but I didn't feel right. Part of it was because of the ass whooping I just received. The other part of it was that if they walked out that door carrying such a burden on their shoulders, I knew someone was going to get hurt worse than me because her scars would probably never heal. And if they did, they wouldn't heal as fast as I would. Not that it was any of my business, not that I owned them anything, not that I particularly cared for either of them, but I decided to meddle. I decided if it was something I could prevent then I would try.

"Olette! Tell someone! Please tell someone! It's not worth being quiet over! Let him pay! Get him back by telling someone that can hurt him back or make him suffer!" Olette and Fujin stopped at the door and looked at me. Fujin's face was a little understanding; sympathetic. But Olette was furious.

"Shut the hell up bitch!" She came at me and started punching me repeatedly. I screamed a little as blood splattered everywhere, the majority coming from my face.

"Olette," Fujin cried. She pulled her off of me, but Olette was still angry. She gave me one final kick in the ribs which set me off to crying. Satisfied, she turned the sink on and splashed water on me.

"Wash off. You're bleeding bitch."

"Come on Olette! She's got it!" I just sat balled up in the fetal position, pain stricken, and they left without looking back.

I stayed in the bathroom for the rest of school. I wouldn't come out until the red, swollen skin on my face went down a considerable amount. My lip was still busted and I had a considerable amount of bruises and cuts that wouldn't go away. Blood was in my clothes and as I stood looking in the mirror, I saw the damage Olette had done. Surprisingly, I didn't hate her for it. I didn't see the attack as hateful, but fearful. I put myself in Olette's place and when I thought about it, I concluded that these scars, bruises, that my pain wasn't actually mine. It was hers. She inflicted on me all the pain that Hayner had inflicted upon her. I started crying because I felt everything that Olette had felt and I forgave her so easily for it. But I hated Hayner with a passion. Maybe I'd give him a little… misplaced aggression. After I dried my face, I left with a fierce determination.

----

"Oh my God! Kairi! What happened??" Namine exclaimed. I joined her out in the parking lot as she waited for Riku to give us a ride home.

"Kairi! Are you alright? Who did this?" Without thinking I said, "Hayner." Namine looked a little scared and surprised.

"Wha… what? Why??" My eyes started burning and my stomach turned about threateningly. I was feeling sick for lying but I was feeling worse for feeling guilty about it.

"It… it… I… Namine!" I started crying uncontrollably and my sister held me tight.

"Shh… shh… it's okay. It's okay Kairi. We'll fix it. I promise we'll fix it…" I felt comfortably reassured when she'd told me so.

When Riku finally came and saw my face he demanded to know what happened. I felt too sick to respond but Namine told him, "Hayner!" When he heard he told Sora and when he heard he went to track down his cousin. When he found Roxas, he found Hayner. Sora and Riku brought Hayner to me and he was scared out of his mind when he saw my face.

"What the hell happened??"

"Don't play dumb you son of a bitch!" Sora cried. He socked Hayner in the jaw and the boy stumbled backward. By this time a crowd had gathered.

"What the hell??" Hayner cried.

"Why'd you do this to Kairi?" Riku demanded. Hayner's eyes widened and he looked at me incredulously. I just cried into my sister's shoulder because I couldn't stand looking at him.

"I didn't do that!"

"Stop lying!" Sora commanded. He pulled Hayner into a headlock and Riku punched him.

"Why'd you do it?"

"I didn't do it! I swear!"

"Why would Kairi lie about something like this?" Sora questioned and tightened his grip around the boy's neck.

"I swear… I didn't! I… don't know why… but she's lying!" Hayner gasped. Sora shook his head as though he didn't want to hear anymore excuses from him.

"Apologize jerkoff!" Namine said. Hayner glared at her.

"I ain't doing shit!" Riku punched him again and said, "Apologize now!" Some people from the crowd began chanting, "Apologize!" Hayner remained stubborn and silent.

"Hey! Apologize you asshole!" Wakka, a boy on Sora and Riku's Blitzball team, cried as he emerged from the crowd. He saw first hand the damage done to my face and was just as pissed as Sora and Riku. Hayner still stayed silent. My own anger flared up now. I broke away from Namine's embrace and stood over him and raised my hand. The back side of it came down and collided against the flesh of his cheek, creating a loud "SMACK". Everyone became silent.

There were so many things running through my mind to say and do to the poor excuse of human existence crunched over in front of me, but I settled with, "How dare you lie about putting your hands on a female? You better fucking apologize then get down on your knees and beg for forgiveness!" Hayner watched me a little. I must have given him a look that made him connect the words I was speaking to Olette. His eyes once again widened with surprise and he blushed with shame.

"I… I'm sorry…" He was sincere. I started crying. Sora loosened his death grip from around Hayner's neck and the blonde fell onto his knees on the pavement.

"I'm so sorry… forgive me…" I sorta glared at him through my tears but my eyes drifted away and connected with Olette's. She was watching and her expression told me all I needed to know in order to respond to his plea.

"Don't you ever touch me again pig!" I kicked him in the balls and he started crying. Everyone began to laugh and cheered. Sora smiled and wrapped an arm around my shoulders.

"Come on Kairi." I obeyed and we all piled into Riku's car and drove away. I looked back at Olette. She was crying, but smiling at the same time. I hoped her scars would begin to heal without fear of festering irritation.


	3. Chapter 3 Pt I

_**Chapter 3: "**__**Geez**__**"**_

_**Part I: What the hell?**_

"I still don't understand why he did this to you Kairi. He's such a jerk," Namine said as she rubbed Neosporin on my cuts. I winced. I figured my sister wouldn't understand even if I did explain what really happened. I didn't feel like explaining. I didn't fully grasp what happened either. I held some ice on my head to stop the swelling as well as to make the pain stop. We were home now and I wanted to forget the whole thing.

"Can we just forget about it please? I've got a headache," I whined. Namine giggled and said, "I imagine so." She finished applying the medicine and sat next to me on my bed. She sighed.

"Geez… I haven't seen Sora get that angry since… well… never. That was kind of hot."

"Oh Namine. Please don't start!"

"Well he was. He was acting real tough and it was hot. It reminded me a lot of other things I like about him…" I sat and listened even though I knew I'd regret it. Namine had some far off look as she recollected memories buried way down in the farthest and deepest depths of her mind.

"When he ignored me today I felt really dumb and scared. I didn't want to lose him… I _don't_ want to lose him. But after seeing him today, it's like I don't even know him anymore. Like he's changed right in front of me but I've been so busy looking somewhere else that I've failed to realize that he's no longer the guy I knew and no longer my boyfriend."

"He's still your guy Ne'," I offered. My sister shook her head a little with a soft smile on her face.

"No. He's not…"

"Well! Geez! What'd you expect? You're sleeping with his best friend!"

"Hush! I know that! But Riku… I always knew it wouldn't last! I always knew I wanted Sora… but every time I tried to end it with Riku… I just can't stop now and I don't know why. I don't know if it's about the sex or… something else. And I haven't wanted to find the answer to that because I know I'd lose Sora and I want Sora. Then there's a big gulf separating us now because of this secret I've been hiding…"

"Tell him Namine."

"No! Then I'll lose him forever! I want to try to find a balance. Some solid ground. Then I'll dump Riku and work things out with Sora." I felt my heart clench painfully and I abruptly turned away from her. Sora didn't deserve to be put second. I didn't understand how hard it was to tell Riku to step off! I cried a little. This secret wasn't just making her life difficult, and I wished she would see that already. I wished she'd understand that she wasn't the only one who loved Sora.

"I wish you'd hurry up. It's not right to do him like this."

"I know…"

"And he's worried about you! You can be so dumb at times!"

"I know…"

"Go away! If you know then why do you insist on making people suffer? Goodnight!" I didn't mean to hurt her feelings, but I guess that I did because the hairs on my neck began to rise and I knew that she was giving me a death glare.

"What? You're really angry aren't you? How do you get to be angry? You don't even understand what the hell's going on! You've never had a boyfriend! You've never loved someone! How do you get to be angry when none of this concerns you?? Geez, I just needed a friend to listen to me without judging me and when I think that person is my sister she turns out to be just as judgmental as the rest of them!" I bit my tongue trying not to explode. I didn't mean to be judgmental. I just spoke the truth.

"Maybe you deserved that ass kicking! I hate you Kairi!"

"Maybe if you'd kept your pants on and your legs closed we would never be having this discussion! And not only that, but what do you expect Namine? I love Sora too! I mean, how do you think I feel about keeping this from him even though I know how much it'll hurt him? Namine! God! You're a moron!" She didn't say anything but sat glaring at me.

"…You're not gay?"

"What?? No! No I'm not! Geez, I mean… what the hell?"

"Sorry. I just thought… well you hangout with Selphie all the time and you touch her a lot and you turn guys down and… I just thought you were gay." My anger subsided and embarrassment took its place. Why'd she think I was gay? None of the evidence she provided seemed good enough! I left boys alone because I didn't want to deal with their BS! Or at least… that's what I told myself… No! I most certainly was not gay!

"But you have a crush on my boyfriend so I know you're not gay now. But if you were I'm just sayin', I'd still love you." That made everything a lot better.

"I don't like Sora like that!"

"Well… then are you gay after all? Geez Kairi that's gross!"

"But you just said…? Namine! I'm not gay!"

"Then… why don't you like Sora? What's wrong with him besides the fact that he's my boyfriend?"

"I…I… hm…," I didn't know how to answer. How'd she jump to the conclusion that I was both gay and liked Sora all at the same time? How the hell was someone supposed to know that they were gay?? And if I liked Sora wouldn't I have known it by now? Namine giggled and I resisted the urge to punch her. She purposely confused me about my sexuality to get back at me for telling her off. Or did she honestly believe what she said?

"Get out Namine!" She broke down in a fit of complete hysterics and left my room. I decided to drop it and go to sleep.

That night, I dreamt about Sora. We were at the beach on one of the Destiny Islands. The sun's heat was mellow; warm and inviting. Sora was in the water only wearing his swim trunks. His tanned skin glistened from the moisture on it and his muscles were as well toned as his tan. He beckoned me over and, at first, I was hesitant, but I couldn't stop myself. I found myself within his arms. I couldn't stop myself from rubbing his smooth, muscular pecks and six pack abs. He in turn played in my hair lovingly with a smile on his face. Without warning he laid me down in the sand and proceeded to run his hands up my abdomen and kiss me gently on the lips.

"Sora…," I mumbled. He squeezed my breast and I moaned. His hand began to travel away and down my stomach to my… I gasped a little and he whispered in my ear, "Is this what you want?" I bit my lip to stop myself from saying something I'd regret but my mind wasn't working because my body had taken over with its explosion of emotion; desire.

"Yes… yes…" Sora grinned and then I woke up. My heart was beating fast and I felt a little wet… I decided to take a cool shower and then tried to go back to sleep. This time, I dreamt about Selphie. I woke-up before letting it get any further than that. I decided I wouldn't be getting any sleep.

The next morning I drank a ton of coffee and tried to ignore my sister's questioning look. I was so embarrassed for having a wet dream about her boyfriend and didn't feel like I had the courage to look her in the eye just yet.

"Hey! Kairi! Look! We dressed alike! Why'd you copy?"

"Huh? Oh. Ha! You copied offa me!"

"Neat! We're like twins! Read my thoughts!" Namine closed her eyes tightly and I rolled my own. When we were little, Namine and I would pretend to be twins especially when we unknowingly dressed alike. Namine thought that during such times we were cosmically aligned with one another and so we were given special powers, such as mind reading. It was strange but I always knew what my sister was thinking about because it always happened to be what I was thinking about as well. Like now for instance. We were wearing what happened to be one of Sora's favorite outfits. He gave us mad compliments the last time we wore it. So I knew what she was thinking about…

"You're thinking about Sora," I said easily. She opened her eyes and applauded happily.

"Right! Apparently so are you," she told. I sipped the last drip of one of my many cups of coffee and shrugged.

"So, are you guys getting back together?"

"We were never apart."

"Right… Right."

"I think you mean, am I breaking it off with Riku and the answer is yes. Are you trying to steal Sora, Kairi?"

"No. I just want his attention. He's all yours…if you can manage."

"Sis, you can't beat me for his affection. I've already won. We've slept together so we're tighter than you and he could ever be." I put my empty coffee cup down and glared at my sister angrily.

"I didn't sleep with his best friend." Before she could retort a car horn blasted three times outside. We looked at each other in confusion and the horn honked again. Namine's cheeks sorta puffed up out of habit when she tried to remember where she'd heard that particular horn before. When we both heard it again, we realized who it was.

"Sora," we exclaimed in unison. We grabbed our bags and books and rushed out the door. We raced down the driveway and luckily I didn't wear my tall, three inch high heel boots with the outfit like Namine had. I was in my sneakers and therefore had the advantage. Before I could stop, I nearly collided into Sora, but he caught me in time. I laughed idiotically and he looked at me questioningly.

"What's so funny?" He worriedly asked. My sister took her time getting there and I took a deep breath in an attempt to calm myself.

"I had about a thousand cups of coffee," I answered, casually. He nodded his head a little in understanding and I took this time to openly examine him. He was quite handsome and I never realized just how blue his eyes were or how one bang hung stubbornly out of place from the rest. I loved how, at the present moment, I was the only thing he saw and I blushed.

"Uh…," I gulped. He smiled and I felt my body heat up all over again like it did after the dream I had. I pulled away from him abruptly and looked away. I was so embarrassed.

"You look nice today by the way," he said. I blushed even more and turned away.

"Wow babe! Your car's all fixed up! Nice," Namine said as she expertly stalked up to us. She wasted no time in taking my place, not only by Sora's side, but also in his world.

I guess it was understandable. Namine was his girlfriend after all and I was just his friend if even that. When Namine was around, I just became his girlfriend's sister. Not that it ever bothered me before. On the contrary actually. I used to hate Sora because he took my sister's attention and much of her time. Of course, my hatred for him didn't last long. He wasn't the type that was easily hated. Apparently he wasn't the type that could easily hate either.

Namine was soon cuddled into his arms and whispering sweet nothings into his ear while he smiled happily. Just yesterday they weren't talking, but today they couldn't get enough of one another. As I stood there watching my sister basically celebrate her landslide victory in my face, I felt stupid for even imaging that I could be her. She was someone else and I was me. And I actually thought those days were over. Sure, once I had thought being Namine was the best thing in the world until I realized that I was great myself. Then I had that dream and I guess it made me want to be her again. Maybe I never fully got over it or maybe it wasn't that I wanted to be her. Maybe I really just wanted to be the one Sora looked at and actually saw. Or it was just the caffeine.

"Okay. You guys ready to ride?" Namine merrily giggled and had already assumed her seat in the front of the car. I looked at the car and at them. I felt so out of place.

"You coming Kairi?" Sora asked. He circled his way around to the driver's seat and looked at me from over the roof of his car. I knew he was just a few feet away, but just then he seemed more like a million meters away.

"Hm? No. I'll walk instead. Don't want to get in the way of you two lovebirds…" Sora gave me a look that I didn't understand nor cared to at that particular moment.

"But… are you sure? I mean… It's two blocks and-''

"Geez! Don't worry! I'm in my walking shoes! I'll be fine. Have fun. See ya at school!" Sora seemed reluctant to go at first, but he got in his car, started up the engine and left. I watched them go feeling a little sad, relieved, and lonely at the same time. I slowly made my way to school. The cool, brisk, fall breeze nipped at me while I walked.

When I finally made it to school, I was half frozen. I was shivering and my teeth chattered noisily. Damn them! Even though I wanted them back together…

"Hey Kairi!" I turned around slowly and saw that it was Olette and Fujin calling to me. Olette waved happily. I absentmindedly touched my face and remembered what happened the day before. Turning back around, I decided that I wanted to go inside rather than be left alone with the two. They wouldn't have any of it.

"Man Kairi! Don't be like that!" Olette was on the track team. She won medals and the word was that the girl was on her way to getting many a scholarship for her skills. So I guess I shouldn't have been surprised when she was right behind me when I turned around.

"Oh… Olette. Hi?" I commented with uncertainty. Fujin, who I didn't notice also sneak up on me, wrapped an arm around my shoulders and grinned.

"We saw what you did yesterday…"

"Along with more than a dozen others," Olette put in.

"And… it was really cool. Right Olette?"

"Of course!"

"So… we just wanted to thank-you," Fujin said merrily, but she added low enough for only me to hear, "If I had my way he'd be dead."

"Right… You're welcomed…," I said. Olette patted me on the back athletic style and she and Fujin walked on together into the building. I watched them unsure if I felt comfortable about the new bond I had created with them.

----

When I walked into the school, it was like a totally different place. Usually when I came in, I was ignored. I almost didn't exist to anyone except those who knew me personally. However… today…

"Hey Kairi! Are you alright? I heard about what happened to you yesterday! That loser got what he deserved!" Some girl, who I had no idea was, said to me. I nodded my head a little.

"Uh… thanks?" She went on her way, but at least twenty other strangers came to me saying the same thing. When I finally managed to get to my locker, the whole Blitzball Team was crowded around it. I saw Selphie flirting with Tidus, remembered the dream I had, and wanted to hurry up and get outta there. But of course those guys wouldn't allow it.

"Hey Kairi! We just wanted to make sure you were okay," Wakka said. He had a slight pink tinge on his cheeks and I silently wondered why he was blushing.

"Yea. And don't worry Kairi! Your sister asked the whole team to watch out for you today, so no one will lay a finger on you," Tidus said. I didn't know whether to be thankful or suspicious. Did she want me distracted so I wouldn't get to see Sora? OR was she seriously being the caring, big sister?

"Thanks I guess…"

"Hey! I'll walk you to first hour when you're ready." I looked behind Wakka and saw that Demyx, another member of the team, was the one who offered. Wakka seemed surprised and a little saddened by the info.

"Uh… okay. Thanks," I said "Excuse me." They moved out of the way and I got into my locker feeling a little confused but also… happy? Selphie whispered into my ear, "What do I have to do to get a whole sports team to be my body guards?"

"Get the shit beaten out of you," I replied. I looked at her with a smile and was surprised to see that she'd turned around to talk with Tidus. My eyes unconsciously trailed down to her butt and I blushed. I closed the locker and stalked away quickly.

"Hey! Wait up Kairi!" I almost forgot about Demyx and slowed down. I needn't have bothered though because he was already beside me.

"Wow! You sure got outta there a hella fast! What's the deal," he stated.

"Uh… umm… I don't like a lot of people around…" I lied, but he nodded as though he understood.

"I know whatcha mean. Here lemme carry those books." Without time to protest, Demyx took my books from me and was carrying them on top of his own. I felt a little guilty, but I had to admit that I liked watching those watermelon muscles on his arms flex.

"Uh… Thanks, but… you don't have to do that…"

"Don't worry. I've got it." I didn't try to protest anymore. He probably wouldn't listen anyway. We walked in silence all the way to my first hour, Intro to Public Speaking.

"Thanks Demyx," I told taking my books from him.

"Dang! I didn't know you knew my name!" He exclaimed. His eyes lit up and a big smile filled his face. I giggled a little at his reaction.

"Well, I know everyone on the team. I mean, my sister's boyfriend is the captain right?" I told, "But I'm surprised you all know me. I could've sworn I was invisible for a moment." Demyx laughed good-naturedly.

"Yea. Well of course we all know who you are Kairi. You just come off as a little unapproachable sometimes. It's unnerving…" My smile faded. Was I really "unapproachable"?

"That's why I can't believe that bastard did that to you! What an ass! I'll make sure to kick him the next time I see him. But listen, I'll meet you back here and walk you to second hour, or to your locker and then second hour. Which ever works out?" My smile was once again apparent on my face.

"Thank-you again Demyx." He blushed and nodded. With a wave of the hand he was gone and I got on with class.

I had first hour with a lot of Juniors. That meant Riku and Sora, most of their pals, and some chicks on the cheerleading squad. I took my seat by the window and waited for the teacher to get there and start class. Everyone else was crowded around Sora, talking about his fight yesterday. I blushed with embarrassment. He beat up his cousin's best friend on account of me. I wondered how that was working. Was Roxas angry at Sora? Was Hayner? Maybe I should have told Olette and Fujin to thank him instead of me and told Hayner and Roxas to be mad at me instead. I didn't want Sora involved… Why is it that people think about the consequences afterward? I looked at him from the corner of my eye. I had to back track for my own clarity.

Why didn't I want him involved? Because I didn't want him to get into trouble.

Why? Why didn't I want him to get into trouble? Because I'd feel guilty.

But why?

I thought about the dream and my conversation with Namine. Did I like Sora after all? I mean more so than I originally thought? My heart fluttered a little and I felt really anxious. During all my reflecting, I was watching Sora and just then he caught my gaze with his own. He smiled and waved. His gesture was simple, nice, caring, and was enough to create a roller coaster of emotion inside of me. I concluded that yes, I did like my sister's boyfriend…

The teacher walked in and I broke eye contact with Sora. It wouldn't do me any good to be distracted for this class. I was a few percentage points away from failing. I hated public speaking.

----

When class ended, I gathered my stuff and hurried to the exit but two cheerleaders stopped right in the middle of my path to freedom from Sora. I sighed heavily.

"Hey. It's Kairi right? Namine's little sister," the one known as Yuffie asked. I nodded "yes" slowly in answer to her question. Yuffie never talked to me, and never really paid any attention to me and likewise I didn't really care much for her either. She was a slut to say the least. She willingly pulled her pants down for any guy. Her friend, Aerith, was a different matter. I liked her. She was also okay friends with my sister and Larxene. She was smart, funny, and a little shy. I always had the hardest time figuring out why it was she hung out with Yuffie. Yuffie smiled a little.

"Awe… what a cute little girl! I hate it that Hayner beat you up like that. That face looks painful." I had the sneaky suspicion that her comment was meant to be taken as a double edged sword.

"Whatever."

"Hey! Hey! There's no need for the attitude Kairi! I was wondering… what brought on the attack anyway? Word has it that Hayner tried to sexually assault you. Is it true?" My cheeks heated up and I gulped nervously.

"Well… not really…"

"Oh. Okay. Just wondering. Who knew you weren't anything like your sister?"

"… What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Oh. Well. We all know Namine sleeps around. I was thinking you guys were a like. I mean, geez, how else had you managed to get the whole Blitzball Team to come under your command? And even had Demyx become quite the gentleman. I mean, walking you to class and everything… _Very sweet_. But then again it's really none of my business right?"

"Right," I snapped. She grinned a little and looked as though she was going to say something else but Sora and Riku came up beside me, getting her tongue tied.

"Hey Yuffie. Hey Aerith," Sora said plainly.

"H…hi Sora. How are you doing? Listen. I heard that you and Namine broke-up yesterday. Is it true?" Yuffie asked. She cocked her head to side like a dog does when it's curious and twisted a strand of hair around her finger in an attempt to appear cute.

"No. Sorry. We're still very much together." She pouted in her disappointment and touched the back of her hand to his cheek. All her petty skank moves were the perfect kindling to my steadily growing rage. Sora jerked his head away from her touch.

"That's too bad. I was hoping you'd finally get to know what being with a proper girl was like. After all, Namine's far from it."

"And with all the nuts you've sucked that makes you any better?" I spat. Sora's eyes widened with surprise and so did Riku's and Aerith's. Yuffie glared at me.

"At least I don't sleep around with my boyfriend's friends." To that I could no longer resist the irritating itch in my fist. I socked her in the eye. She stumbled while she held her face.

"That's because you're too busy sleeping around with everyone else to have a boyfriend. Bitch!" Yuffie looked as though she was going to do something crazy but Sora pulled me away from her reach. As we left I heard Riku say, "Take that." I wanted to punch him too. If he wasn't sleeping with Namine behind Sora's back then Yuffie wouldn't have any reason to say those things about my sister. My anger was so great that I felt my body shake.

"Kairi. Kairi calm down. It's okay. Yuffie's an ass and we all know it." Even Sora's comforting wasn't enough. I slammed my books down and stomped my foot angrily.

"No Sora! No it's not! She doesn't get to talk about my sister that way! And you… you need to pay more attention to your friends!"

"Geez! Don't PMS on me Kairi! What'd I do?"

"If you'd watch your friends then maybe she wouldn't have said what she had!"

"What? Are you saying that Namine's sleeping around behind my back? Is that what you're telling me?" I didn't respond. I saw Riku behind Sora. His face was pale and he looked at me as though he couldn't believe what I was saying. Sora's eyes were ablaze with questioning and anger. I looked away from him.

"No… no. I just… Why would she say something like that about Namine?" Sora seemed to have calmed down a considerable amount and he sighed as he rubbed his temples.

"I told you. Yuffie's an ass and we both know not to take what she says seriously. Now are you cooled off yet?" I nodded and cast my eyes downward. I couldn't stand it. I really couldn't. Why? Why had I lied? Why had I protected Riku? He hasn't done anything but wrong. So why did I feel guilty? I glared at Riku from the corner of my eye. He was just as dirty as Yuffie if not more. Sora picked up my books and handed them to me.

"Thanks…," I managed to say. Sora smiled softly.

"You're welcome. And try not to get into anymore trouble. I can't be with you all the time…"

"Sora… sorry…," I choked out. Tears fell from my eyes and I quickly tried to wipe them away before he saw.

"Kairi?" I didn't wait for him to say anything more. I just hurried and walked away. Was that all I was good for? Turning my back on the truth? When I thought about it, I was just as bad as Riku, Namine, and Yuffie because I let the truth drown in a sea of deception in order to protect myself. What had I to protect myself from? If Sora ever found out it wouldn't be me he hated. It'd be them. But I didn't want Namine hurt. I didn't him to lose his best friend…

My hurting Sora by not telling him was driving me crazy! I wouldn't stand for it anymore! I marched to my sister's locker and pounded on it angrily. She was startled and so were her friends, Larxene and Tifa.

"Geez Kairi! What in the world…?"

"Tell him Namine! Tell him or I will!"


	4. Chapter 3 Pt II

_**Chapter 3: "**__**Geez**__**"**_

_**Part II: What a day**_

"Geez Kairi! Stop making a scene! Come with me this way…," Namine said as she directed me away from everyone's curious gazes. Tifa and Larxene followed us into the girl's bathroom and I checked all the stalls to make sure they were empty before signaling the okay to lock the door. Larxene obliged and we were all shut up in the bathroom.

"Now. What the heck were you going on about Kairi?" Namine asked. By this time my anger was cooled and replaced with sadness.

"You need to tell Sora about you and Riku or tell Riku to shove off because I'm not going to keep acting like nothing's going on! It's making me sick, literally, and my conscience can't take it! I know you think it doesn't concern me but… it kinda does when I have to defend you from people who go around spreading rumors and even Sora! I can't stand facing him knowing what I know! It's killing me! So tell him or I swear to bob that I'll do it for you!" Everyone was quiet. Larxene and Tifa exchanged looks before looking at Namine who was keeping a steady gaze with me.

"…Who's spreading rumors?" She inquired.

"What? Does it matter? I've got it handled!"

"Kairi! Who is spreading the rumors?" Her face was neutral. She seemed calm, but at the same time her voice resembled a beach before a tsunami struck. I never saw her so serious; consequently, her attitude completely stumped me. I was curious about seeing her reaction if I told her, but at the same time I didn't want to know what she'd do…

"Kairi. Who is it?" Her eyes pierced to the core of my soul. I felt like couldn't not answer, so very feebly I said, "…Yuffie… She was talking to Sora about you in first hour…"

"And? What'd she say?"

"…She uh… she was basically calling you a whore and saying that you sleep around with all of Sora's friends…" Namine's face lost its sternness and became mellower. Her gaze drifted to the mirror and I saw her looking at herself. She was just staring at her reflection trying to find something. Something that was lost. Tears were evident in her eyes and I looked at Larxene and Tifa for guidance. They just shrugged.

"Namine. He still doesn't know. He thinks Yuffie's just a dumb whore…," I offered as condolence. Her watery eyes didn't drift away from her reflection, but she did contemplate the words I said.

"…Right… But… how does she even…? When did she find out about…?" My sister stuttered. Larxene put a hand on her shoulder in comfort.

"Don't worry. We'll find out and get that slut back. Come on Tifa," she said. Tifa followed her out of the bathroom and I stared at Namine feeling sorry for her.

"… I did punch her in the face though…"

"Yea... I guess. I guess you win sis'. I'll end things with Riku before this gets out of hand anymore than it has." Her reflection changed. She was no longer solemn but more determined and she stomped out of the restroom. I followed behind her dumbly. Riku was just outside and Namine barely glanced at him. My heart was beating real fast but I decided not to make eye contact with him either for fear that I'd feel even worse than I felt.

Namine went to class without saying anything to anyone and so had I. What was there to say? It was all a big mess. I was preoccupied all throughout the school day about the matter and barely got any work done.

When I went to my locker after last hour, I saw Demyx leaning against it leisurely. A crescent moon grin appeared on his face when he saw me coming.

"What happened? I thought you were meeting up with me after second hour? Got caught up in some stuff?" He questioned. I blushed with embarrassment.

"Yea. Sorry…"

"It's alright. I got you tomorrow. Right?" He pushed himself off of the locker and I realized that I didn't really notice just how tall he actually was until that moment.

"Yea… look. I feel really bad about today. Let me make it up to you?" Demyx seemed to think about this for a moment before he smiled and said, "Sure. Why not? How about coming with me to that party at Seifer's place tomorrow? It's gonna be hype." I sighed heavily and shook my head.

"I don't do parties," I stated firmly. He seemed disappointed.

"But I saw you at Raajin's party the other day. Why not go to Seifer's party?" I forgot that he was there. The only reason _I_ was there was by force. Namine left a message to our parents saying that we had to stay late at school. Not that they'd be home to see us anyway, but if they did come home and I was the only one home, Namine would get into trouble. Our folks still considered her a "virgin" and so she wasn't allowed to be alone with boys. For example, our parents knew that Sora gave us rides and if one of us was riding with Sora, then we both were. But anyway, there was no way to talk her out of the party so the only solution was to join her and I regretted it.

"Yea… but…"

"Kairi. Can I ask you something completely off topic and none of my business?"

"Uh… sure. I guess…"

"Okay. Are you gay?" My eyes widened and my jaw dropped.

"Ex… excuse me?"

"Uh… are you gay? I was just asking because well, you seem to get along better with girls and I haven't seen you with too many guys… Have you even had a boyfriend before?" My head was spinning. I couldn't believe he was questioning my sexuality!

"No! No I'm not!"

"Hey! No need to get angry! I mean… it's okay right?"

"No! I can't believe this! Are you asking because you expect every girl to drop her pants in your presence or something? Sorry, but I'm no groupie. If you were looking for easy prey you picked the wrong person guy!" Demyx's eyes widened and I glared at him before stomping away.

"Word of advice, pull that stick out your ass before you talk to me again!" I shouted back as I gave him the finger.

I honestly couldn't believe it! He really questioned my sexuality because he expected me to say yes? Tch! Whatever! I can do much, much better.

When I got to the parking lot, I was surprised to see Namine talking with Riku. I knew she was breaking up with him, but I didn't know that it was going to be so fast. Stealthily, I snuck up on them, hiding behind Sora's BMW, and listened.

"So. You wanted to talk to me?" He asked. Namine nodded and I saw a faint blush on her cheeks.

"…We need… We need to stop seeing each other," she said softly. There was silence and Riku looked at my sister, staring into her eyes.

"… Yea. I guess you're right…"

"You were there when Yuffie nearly told Sora about us right?"

"Yea…" There was more silence and Namine distracted herself by pulling on her blonde hair seemingly checking for split ends. Riku watched her intently as though he wanted to remember everything about her in this moment.

"I didn't know breaking this off was going to be so hard...," she said finally. She stopped playing with her hair and once again locked eyes with Riku.

"… If you say so."

"What's your problem Riku? Why are you acting like a jerk off? I mean… it's over! Aren't you angry or sad?? Geez!"

"What the hell Namine? You're the one acting like this isn't some big deal! You're calling it off! I mean… I'm the one that's going to have to sit back and watch Sora touch you, and kiss you, and hold you… Do you think this is what I want!? Dammit!"

"… So… you're angry?"

"I'm as fucking bright as sunshine and shitting rainbows! Geez! Of course I'm angry! I'm _pissed_! Why does Sora get to have you? Huh? Why can't it be me? I want you Namine! I… I…," he abruptly stopped and broke his gaze with my sister in order to look at his shaking fist. He watched it as though his eyes could stop it from moving. As though stopping it would stop the serge of emotion that caused the fist to shake. Namine followed his eyes and watched it as well.

"… I always thought… you just liked me for my body Riku… I never thought it'd grown so serious. I've imagined myself by Sora's side since middle school. I even imagined us married and what our kids might look like…," she said with a small smile. She took Riku's shaking fist into her hand and caressed it lovingly.

"When… when you first kissed me… I was… I was so surprised that I remember thinking that 'oh my gosh I've kissed my boyfriend's best friend!' When we first made love… I… I felt so… so overwhelmed with ecstasy that I remember thinking 'I had sex with Riku!' Slowly… so slowly you became someone who meant more to me than just my boyfriend's best friend. But… but… all the sneaking and dodging… all the late night talks… I… I wasn't sure that it was right. I love Sora. I knew that. And at the same time I felt… I felt… Whenever I was with you I felt so spontaneous… Needed… I felt like I was wanted as badly as I needed wanting." Riku watched her intently and tears formed in her eyes.

"I was scared. I didn't ever know… I never knew with you. You always kept me guessing. I was tired of guessing. I needed something solid. Sora was my support Riku and I know that he'll always be my support. I don't want to lose him Riku. I love him." Her tears fell freely and Riku took her into his arms. His embrace was tight and he buried his head in her hair.

"He was your support… but I was the one who actually comforted you…" Riku breathily said. Namine dug herself from his chest and looked him in the eyes. He cupped her cheek in one of his masculine hands and used his thumb to wipe her tears away.

"I always knew who you were to me Namine. I never doubted it once… Despite all the sneaking and dodging."

"Riku…"

"I could never really express myself the way Sora can so maybe I was the one who really drove you to this decision but… I never just cared about the sex… It was being in your company that really mattered to me. I was content with just a smile or a look my way. I never cared… except it bothered me, always, how whenever you looked at me… you saw the other guy. I didn't want to be the other guy Namine. Never…"

"Riku…"

"And I won't be. As much as it hurts me to say it… good bye… Namine."

"Riku!" He cocked his head slightly and caught her lips with his own. Namine moaned and kissed him back. Tears were rolling down her flushed cheeks and she dug her fingers into his arm as she sobbed. He pulled her closer and deepened the kiss to silence her; to take away her pain. I felt my eyes water. I never knew… I never knew Namine felt that way. And I never knew… I never knew that Riku truly loved my sister. When Namine broke for air, Riku pulled her head to his chest and stroked her hair affectionately.

" I love you Namine," he whispered ever so gently. She broke down in hysterical wails that wracked her body.

"No! No!" She cried. Riku held her a little longer before he finally let her go. She tried to grab onto his sleeve but he pulled away from her and walked to his car. He got in and drove off without looking back.

"Riku!" My sister called after him, but he was already gone. "Riku…" I felt my own tears roll down my face and I tried to sob silently. Was I the cause of this pain? Why had I pushed her so hard? I wanted badly to go to her and comfort her but then she'd know that I was sneaking around, butting in affairs that were none of my concern.

Suddenly all my problems seemed minimal. Geez, what a helluva day.


	5. Chapter 4 Pt I

_**Chapter 4: Finders. Keepers.**_

_**Part I: Winners. Losers.**_

"Look out!"

"What? AH!"

"…You okay?"

"Yea… ow… shit! Let's get the hell outta here now!!"

_Saturday_

When I woke up the next day I was still asleep. It was strange. My eyes were opened but I seemed to be stuck in a state of dreaming because the dog looking back at me with its tongue hanging out of its mouth couldn't possibly be real… could it?

"Warf!" I jumped up, startled by the thing's vociferous bark. My head was spinning from the sudden movement and I screamed. The dog was startled at my outcry and ran around in circles, howling.

"Kairi!" I saw Sora take the dog by its collar and try to pull it down from the bed. The dog was stubborn, but it finally hopped down on its own and sprinted from the room, tail wagging.

"Sora! What the hell," I cried. Sora grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head embarrassedly.

"That's my mom's dog, Angelo. I uh… well I brought him over to cheer Namine up, but he seems to be making things worse…"

"Namine?"

"Yea. She likes dogs right? Besides, she's been a little down since two days ago. I thought I'd just cheer her up... Know what's bugging her?" I shook my head even though I saw a vivid replay of her and Riku's break up in my mind. My own heart dropped down to my stomach and I felt like crying myself from the memory alone.

"What's your problem? Don't tell me you're sad too!"

"Huh? No! No I'm not. I was thinking that maybe… maybe it was Seifer's party yesterday. Maybe she drank too much?"

"Yea. Maybe… But you only drink so much when you want to forget something. So what ever it is bugging Namine's gotta be bad." Sora's eyes looked down cast and his sadness seemed to radiate throughout the entire room. I got up, unsure of how I'd comfort him, but I did manage to encircle my arms around his torso in a loose embrace as I said, "It's okay… things can only get better." I was startled when he closed what little space there was between us as he hugged me back, tightly.

"I wish she'd tell me… I feel helpless."

"You're not helpless… Just… give it time."

"…Yea…" I squeezed him a little and laid my head on his chest. He smelled so good. I inhaled more loudly than I intended. I hoped he wasn't freaked out by my sniffing him. I didn't want our time together to end exactly right at the moment.

"Sora…," I breathed. I was beginning to loose myself in his warmth (against my own will mind you) and his arms released themselves from around my small frame. He pushed me away gently and I looked him in the eyes.

"Uh… thanks Kairi. I'm sorry… for uh… waking you up. I'll let you get dressed now." I blushed when I realized that I was still in my sleep clothes, boxers and a tank top. And to top it off… my nipples were hard. I turned around and crossed my arms over my chest while proceeding to laugh off my awkwardness. Sora chuckled a little himself as he left the room like a perfect gentleman. I was left wanting more.

It couldn't be that he didn't know how I felt about him by now. Not that it mattered if he did or not. He made his choice. He was in love with my sister as much as I hated to admit it. Besides, he had to be used to girls liking him so much anyway, what with his fan club at school and everything. He had to see me the same way he saw those groupies. However, I knew that I was no groupie. I didn't worship the ground he walked on. I just liked him. A lot. So… how could I differentiate myself from those girls? Why was I worried about it? My sister had already done so. She already won.

After I took a shower and got dressed, I went downstairs and saw Namine sitting on the cough with her head lulled back. Angelo was sitting with her with his head in her lap. His tail wagged when he saw me coming and I was scared that he'd jump on me.

"Stay…," I said cautiously. He did and I smiled. "Good boy." I patted his head and watched Namine for any signs of life. She moaned.

"Hang over?"

"Mm," she mumbled, "Ugh…"

"Are you gonna live?" I asked as I shook her by her shoulder a little bit. She looked at me with squinty eyes.

"Unfortunately…" My stomach had a threatening flopping sensation and I thought I was going to be sick. I took a seat next to her and Angelo decided to lay across both our laps with lazy ease. My sister numbly rubbed him as her eyes focused on nothing. She was just staring out in the vast space of nothingness perhaps filling its voids with imaginative figments in order to create for her a false comfort. I wanted to cry.

She wasn't herself since her and Riku split. With the way they felt about one another, I guessed that it was the natural reaction. Still, Namine wasn't the type to ever get sad. Never. She was the epitome of confidence; strength, beauty, and happiness embodied into one gorgeous female who unknowingly fell victim to her boyfriend's best friend's charms. I would blame all her pain on Riku but I knew it wasn't just his fault. He was probably hurting as well. Naturally I blamed myself for her hurt. Maybe if I didn't push her to do it… But I was a lot more relieved now because I knew things would slowly melt back into place… Though I wondered how that could even be possible. Too much had happened. I couldn't worry about the future. My problem was now. How did I make my sister feel better?

"…Namine… I'm… sorry," I told. Why did I feel the need to apologize for other people? Namine grinned a little and continued to focus her gaze at emptiness.

"What have you got to be sorry for? You didn't do anything."

"But… But I was the one who forced you to break up with Riku… and… you're suffering. I'm sorry." Namine was quiet, but I could tell that she was thinking. Her hand kept going back and forth, down and up Angelo's back. He wagged his tail with content and I envied him. It must be easy being a dog.

"You take way too much blame on yourself Kairi. This isn't your life. It's mine. I make the decisions and therefore deal with the consequences. When I broke-up with Riku it was because I know I have a future with Sora… At least I want one. He's a great guy. Riku… is just Riku."

"But… you love him." This time she looked at me.

"And I chose to get over it. How can I be sure it's love? If it's meant to be then it will be. Now, for real Kairi stop worrying about my life and focus more on your own. It's okay to be concerned but stop making my problems your problems. Get some of your own." After she said that she got up with Angelo and left the room. I sat there feeling dumb and also a little happy. I was glad that my assumptions about my sister were correct. She was strong. Pain was inevitable and she knew it. It didn't matter who she chose, she expected to be unhappy because of whatever she decided to give up. She also knew that I wasn't a good enough reason to base her choice on… Was I really trying to live her life? Didn't I have my own?

----

Weekends weren't pleasurable anymore. I felt so worn out and didn't know why. Then all my misplaced energy wasn't enough to come up with something to do, so I walked around my block. For a late November day, it was hot; completely different from what the weather had been lately. I sighed with boredom.

"Hey! Kairi!" I turned around and saw Olette coming up behind me. She was carrying groceries and I rushed to help her.

"Are you alright? Here. I got it," I said as I took two of her bags. Olette smiled and nodded her head in thanks. We continued on the path I was walking on.

"So. I didn't catch you at Seifer's party yesterday. What were you up to?" She questioned.

"…Nothing. I was just feeling sorry about myself." Olette looked at me and questioningly arched an eyebrow.

"What about? It can't be worse then rape."

"Yea… b…but…," I got tongue tied. Her cracking jokes about that didn't seem at all funny. Maybe that was how she chose to deal with it but I was still sore from the ass whooping I received on account of it.

"But what?" I couldn't believe I was going to open up to her, but I needed to talk to someone. Selphie was smitten with Tidus (I was avoiding her anyway) and Namine had her own problems to deal with. They were the only ones I talked to.

"Well… for one I think I'm bordering along the lines of being gay."

"The hell?"

"Well. See, I was asked to go to Seifer's party yesterday by Demyx a day before the party. I turned him down and he called me gay. Not only that but my sister thought I was gay for hanging out with Selphie, who I am avoiding so as not to give any more false impressions of myself…"

"Why didn't you go to the party anyway? That would have pissed Demyx off especially if you'd gone with someone else," Olette explained. I sighed. We came to a busy intersection. Once the light turned, we rushed to the other side of the street.

"I hadn't turned him down for calling me gay… I just turned him down…"

"What?? He's f-ing gorgeous AND available!"

"AND I found out yesterday that Yuffie likes him and she's giving me hell for him being nice to me. If it weren't for her, maybe I would have actually gone to the party. I had been reconsidering since he apologized and everything."

"You let that slut change your mind for you??? Kairi you're too soft! If you wanted to go you should have went. I mean, Demyx is fully capable of choosing who he likes and it seems to me that he likes you."

"Yea… but… I like someone else."

"… It's not a girl is it?"

"No. But he's taken so it might as well be…"

"Kairi. You give up too easily. If the guy you want is taken then steal him or move on. Look at me. I dumped Roxas and am now going steady with… uh… what's his name? Oh! Raajin!"

"Seifer's friend?"

"Fujin hooked us up. And yea. I like him. He's funny and a helluva lot nicer then Roxas…" As she said this, I saw a slight quiver in her lip. I knew she was lying but I wondered why. If leaving Roxas hurt her so much then why did she do it? I decided not to ask at this particular point in time. It wasn't my problem after all. Maybe I'd go through some tough decision and be in pain from its outcome then I'd know. Olette stopped in front of a large house and I gasped. I forgot that she had money. Her estate was ridiculously large and she went on about her business as if it was nothing. I wondered why she was out buying the groceries herself. Didn't she have someone to do that? She kicked open the front gates and walked on the pavement that led to the main house. I followed, engrossed with all the statues and giant fountain decorating the yard.

We were both near the door when we spotted a person sitting on her stoop. I gasped in surprise when I realized that it was Roxas. He was sitting with an irritated expression. Olette seemed to see right pass him until he blocked her way into her own home.

"Move," she hissed. Her eyes were averted elsewhere as she refused to look at him.

"No. We need to talk. How come you've been blowing me off? And what's with this whole Raajin thing? Did Fujin put you up to this? Huh?" He questioned. Olette didn't speak and continued to look at everything but him.

"Olette. Come on. This shit's not funny anymore."

"I wasn't aware that it was a joke. And good God. Is that you smelling like that? What have you been up to?" Since Olette brought it up, I saw that he was looking ragged and there was a stench that mingled with the nice fall air. Roxas sniffed under his armpits.

"Oh. Well. Actually I haven't been home for a while…"

"What's your excuse this time? Your uncle wouldn't let you smoke in the house?"

"…I've missed you," he plainly and earnestly said. Olette looked him in the eyes. They were silent and Roxas stuffed his hands in his pockets to stop their nervous shaking.

"Roxas…"

"I… just don't understand what I did wrong."

"You made out with Yuffie! What do you think?"

"It didn't mean anything! Geez! You know I didn't mean anything by that shit!"

"… It hurt me… badly."

"Olette! How can anything hurt you?? You have everything! You're good at everything! And you know that you're all I've got!"

"…Then why'd you make out with her? You claim to love me but all we seem to do is fight and you… you… I can't deal with it anymore!"

"What the hell do I have to do to make it up to you??"

"… Get outta the way. I'm with Raajin now."

"You're not serious."

"But I am actually."

"Olette."

"Move."

"Please be reasonable."

"Move."

"Olette!"

"… Move." Roxas stood his ground and so did Olette. Finally yielding to his defeat, Roxas looked away from her and began to walk away. He paused, mid-stride, and whispered to her, "Once you told me that I was the one you wanted… I guess it was a lie."

"… And you told me that you loved me. You don't hurt the people you love Roxas." He stood there glaring at her, but Olette refused to meet his gaze. She went inside and Roxas continued on his way. As he walked pass me, he said, "Kairi."

"Roxas…," I acknowledged. He continued on his way and I watched him leave.

"Kairi! Get in here!" I obeyed Olette's command and entered into her glamorous home.

"Momma! I'm home!" Olette yelled after she slammed the front door closed.

"Good! I was just on my way out! Can you take those groceries to your nana?"

"Where is she?"

"I think she's in the kitchen!"

"Okay!" I covered my ears, recoiling from the extreme amplitude of their voices. If their main means of communication meant extremely loud talking throughout different parts of the house, I didn't want to stay any longer than need be. I followed Olette down an extravagant hall that led to her kitchen and there I saw an old lady fussing around with the stove.

"Hi nana," Olette said (in a normal tone of voice I might add). Her grandmother ceased her work to pull her grandchild into a loving embrace, laughing happily as she did so.

"My gorgeous grandchild has returned! Wonderful!" she exclaimed. Olette laughed and pulled away from her warm embrace.

"Yea. My friend Kairi helped me." Olette said with a grin. She placed the bags on the marble counter and I followed suit while saying, "It's very nice to meet you."

"Likewise. Olette doesn't have many female friends after all. She's too busy wooing the young men huh? Like that nice young man who waited for you on the stoop. I invited him in dear but he was very stubborn… He'd been out there for well over an hour. Did you talk to him?"

"… I rather I hadn't. I don't even understand why he bothered," Olette muttered. Her grandmother and I exchanged looks.

"Ah. Yes. Alas, every rose has its thorn," she said wisely. Olette just shrugged off her grandmother's comment.

"I don't want to talk about it. Come on Kairi." I followed Olette out of the kitchen, feeling guilty for her foul mood. After all, I encouraged Roxas to talk to her.

Yesterday he cornered me in the hallway when I happened to be alone. Lately, solitude was a rarity that I savored anytime I could get it. He wasn't too happy.

"You're the one who claims that Hayner beat you up right? My cousin's girlfriend's sister?"

"What's it to you?"

"Don't get fresh girl. Thanks to you, Hayner's facing expulsion and I'm having trouble at home. Sora won't stop picking fights with me."

"Well I'm sorry to hear it," I said. I turned to go because I didn't want to be late for class, but he pushed me up against the lockers forcefully and I felt my head spin dangerously.

"What the hell?" I cried.

"You're not sorry yet, but believe me, you're gonna be very sorry if you don't go talk to the principal right now and tell him that it wasn't Hayner who beat you up."

"He did!" Roxas glared at me angrily and slammed his fist into the locker by my head. I involuntarily flinched.

"Stop lying! He doesn't even know you to hit you like that! Besides that, he's not that kind of guy!" My own anger grew and I pushed him away from my personal space.

"How do you know what kind of guy he is? Just because you haven't seen him hit a girl doesn't mean that he hasn't!" Roxas shook his head in disagreement.

"Maybe so… but I know he didn't hit you of all people."

"And how do you know this?"

"First off, you're a terrible liar so I don't see how you got everyone eating out of your hand like that and secondly, because he likes you… or did anyway." My whole body shivered even though it wasn't cold. I hated him. I couldn't believe that he liked me! There was no way in hell that I'd be his girl anyway! Roxas watched me and finally asked, "Why did it have to be him that you chose to screw over? Who are you really trying to protect?" I stared back at him, reluctant to answer. As I looked into his eyes, I noticed for the first time all the similar traits he and Sora held for just being cousins. Despite his crummy attitude, I concluded that I owed him an answer of some kind for being Sora's cousin if nothing else.

"Talk to Olette about it. Hayner may not have done any harm to me up front, but Olette…" I didn't think getting into specifics was a good idea. What if Olette was still sore about the attack? Roxas arched an eyebrow and crossed his arms impatiently.

"Me and Olette aren't talking right now."

"And why do you think that is? Well, if you can't get it from her then ask your little buddy about it. Since he's such a _nice_ guy maybe he'll tell you the truth." Slowly his attitude changed. He seemed more anxious and curious.

"… What happened? What'd he do to Olette?"

"I'm not entitled to say. Ask either one of them. And another thing, Sora has every right to pick fights with you, especially if you're anything like the company you keep." I left him in a bigger state of perplexity after I talked with him than before.

To think he actually listened.

I looked at Olette as she lay on her large king-sized bed and played with one of her many decorative pillows. I took a seat in her bean bad chair at the other end of the room and observed my surroundings. I was in a rainbow paradise. She certainly enjoyed colorful spaces.

"Cozy," I commented. She grinned.

"Ain't it though?" She sat up and tossed a fluffy decorative pillow my way. I caught it.

"Listen. Olette. I was just wondering… why don't you like Roxas anymore?" Olette sighed heavily and laid on her back, arms wide opened, staring at her sky blue ceiling complete with spacious white blobs drabbled on here and there, which I guessed were supposed to be clouds of all kinds. When she didn't respond right away, I thought that she was angry or something. Finally, she said, almost in a whisper, "We're two totally different people… Roxas, before he was taken in by Sora's folks, was an orphan that worked the streets. He's a rough guy who barely trusts anyone and takes whatever he gets. Me, I'm a straight 'A' student, I'm on the honor roll, and I'm a triumphant athlete that's on her way to the top. We're two very contradictory existences trying to mesh together… I met him at a party that I'd gone to with Fuu. It wasn't a big party, but it was full of a lot of older kids. Usually I wouldn't have gone. I would stick firmly to my studies even though it was summer time. I was really stressed out and needed to take my mind offa things.

"Heh. I remember I was basically glued to the wall because I felt like such a nerd… so outta place. He came and talked to me. He said, 'Aren't you gonna dance?' At first I ignored him because I thought he was a… uh… junky I guess you could say. But he was so persistent…"

"What? Can't a top grade girl like you dance?"

"I felt like he was challenging me so naturally I accepted. We danced and… and something about us just clicked right away. I liked him a lot and that night I lost my virginity. After school started I barely had time enough to talk to him so he came to our school from offa the streets. At first it worked, but I guess he started to feel intimidated because he was a grade behind me and two behind Sora. He's not a dumb guy but school wasn't agreeing and apparently we weren't either. He always assumed I was better than him at everything and I was getting irritated at him for not pushing himself to do his best. We kept going back and forth and were constantly at one another's throat. We broke up and got back together. And really. There's only so much a girl can take Kairi. I wish I was more like you. No boy's worth that much trouble." I blushed with embarrassment. I knew she didn't really want to be like me. I was missing out on the great things about having a boyfriend by not trying. She was strong enough to try and now she was giving up the love of her life to be someone like me…

"… But… you still… love him right?" It was quiet and Olette turned to her side, a small smile gracing her lips.

"… I do actually. But I don't want to be hurt anymore. It's just not working out."

"Maybe you should have listened to him earlier. He seemed really sorry."

"He's always sorry and never changes. I asked him to stop hanging out with Hayner but he refused."

"Did you tell him that he raped you?"

"…No." I shook my head and tossed the pillow I was holding up into the air. It came back down and I caught it.

"You need to talk to him. He really isn't stupid. He knows Hayner didn't beat me up… and I kinda led him to believe… that he hurt you some kind of way…" Olette looked at me with a shocked expression.

"What?"

"But I didn't tell him that he raped you." Olette sighed in disbelief. I squeezed the furry pillow to myself and watched her intently. She seemed to be having a silent mental battle with herself about the matter because she kept smiling and frowning, giggling and sighing like a person with split personality disorder. Just then her phone rang, interrupting the multiple personalities' battle.

"Hello? Olette speaking…," she answered, "What? Fuu? Is that you? Ha! I rhymed! … What? Hold on, I've got Kairi over. Lemme put you on speaker phone."

"Hello?" Fujin's voice said through the speaker of Olette's hot pink cordless house phone.

"Hi Fujin," I greeted.

"Hey Kairi… Anyway, Olette are you f-ing listening to me?? They stole it! It's gone missing and now Seifer's bitching at me on his sister's behalf! And if he keeps bitching at me about his sister's problems I'm gonna get irritated to the point that I hack off his balls and make him sit on them and squish them!!"

"Fuu. Calm down…"

"I am calm! Seifer's the one flippin' out!"

"Wait a minute. What?" I asked. Olette bit a finger nail off her pinky and spit it back out.

"Seifer's sister, rather half sister I should say, has misplaced something valuable and has Seifer buggin'."

"What?"

"His sister doesn't know that it's gone Olette! She's out of town with his step mom for the weekend and it went missing after the party."

"What is 'it' exactly?" My question went unheard or ignored.

"Oh. Well, he's screwed. Doesn't he know to hide the valuables during happy hour?"

"Don't you know party goers like to sniff out the valuables?" Fujin countered, "Olette help me help him find out who stole it or I swear no one's gonna be a happy camper because I'll slowly and painfully torture everyone until I can't anymore!!"

"What?? Excuse me but what exactly is missing here?" I butted in. Olette didn't answer but looked at the phone expectantly.

"Seifer lost his sister's photo album," Fujin said grimly. I looked at Olette, searching her face for meaning. What was so important about a stinky book full of pictures? Fujin seemed to read my mind because she said, "It's like a diary. She's taken pictures of important and personal moments of her life… Anyway, the point is, she'd rather not have that out in the open."

"Oh," was the only response I could manage.

"Olette! Help me dammit! He's pissing me off!"

"Okay. Okay! Get over here to my place ASAP and we'll figure this together."

"'Kay!" We heard a dial tone and Olette hung up her phone.


	6. Chapter 4 Pt II

_**Chapter 4: Finders. Keepers.**_

_**Part II: Hide. Seek.**_

When Fujin finally arrived, she wasted no time in getting down to business.

"Okay. So, me and Sef managed to narrow the list of suspects. The book went missing approximately around one or two o'clock when the party was basically over and there were still a few lingering bodies," Fujin explained. She held out a sheet of notebook paper with names written messily on it so we could see. I wasn't surprised to see half of the names on there that I did. Most of them were the names of people who partied no matter what time it was. I was, however, surprised to see my sister's name along with her friends'. Olette yawned in exasperation.

"So what? There's like… ten people on there…," she said, "Big help."

"There were over two hundred people there originally. This is a hella good help," Fujin retorted, "But you were there Olette. Notice anyone snooping about?"

"Hm… Raajin was getting into stuff… but nothing personal… Uh. Hm. Demyx seemed really interested in Paine's stuff and so did Larxene."

"Well. That takes care of two definite suspects."

"My sister doesn't have it. So you could mark her off your list," I told.

"But doesn't she hang out with Larxene all the time? Maybe we shouldn't be so quick to discount her. They could be in cahoots with one another," Olette said. I shook my head in disagreement. If only she knew the toil Namine was in. It was way too much to scheme on other people.

"Okay three then. What about… Tifa or Aerith?"

"They hang out with Larxene too."

"So we got five major suspects. How about… Wakka or Zexion or Cloud?"

"Tch. They were only there to get drunk. They had no interest whatsoever in anything besides booz. Axel too," Olette claimed.

"Alright. So we've basically accused all the pep squad and Demyx for the crime. Who do we start questioning first?"

"Demyx. He's easy."

"Okay. Then your sister Kairi because she's the next easiest."

"…Right…"

We went to Demyx's house only to discover that he wasn't home. He was over at Wakka's place along with other team members to practice their Blitzball skills before their game next week.

When we got there we found them playing in Wakka's pool. They were shirtless and wet… I felt my cheeks heat up. Demyx looked especially good. I couldn't place my finger on exactly what it was that intrigued me about him though. I had the sneaky suspicion that it was mostly his buff chest and well defined abs. His calves were nice too…

"Earth to Kairi! See something you like?" Olette teased as she waved a hand in front of my face.

"Uh…"

"Haha! You really got the hots for Demyx. You know that right?"

"She does? Well who could blame her? He's sexy," Fujin agreed, "Now stop standing here and let's go!" As Fujin forced us into trespassing onto Wakka's property, I felt oddly subconscious. I watched Demyx jump from the water like a dolphin only to be tackled in mid air by Tidus. They both hit the water with a great force, which created a giant splash of water. My heart was beating too fast. What if he was angry at me for blowing him off… twice? Third time's always a charm though… right?

"Hey water monkeys! We need to talk to one of your players really fast," Fujin said pointedly. Six heads emerged from the pool's depths and twelve eyes looked at us incredulously. My heart skipped a beat when Demyx looked at me.

"Whatcha want ya ol' hag?" Tidus questioned.

"We need to talk to Demyx real fast," Fujin repeated, "And watch who you're calling a hag you mentally retarded ape."

"What do you need me for," Demyx demanded.

"You came to Seifer's party yesterday right?"

"Yea."

"Yea. So you need to answer a few questions for us."

"Ask 'em now."

"No. They're for your ears only."

"Boo! Plead the fifth Demyx!" Axel told.

"Yea really. We're busy practicing ladies. You're just gonna have to try again later," Wakka said. Fujin frowned angrily and kicked some dirt into the water. The boys' protests were loud.

"There won't be a later because if we don't get this information now then the person who the questions are related to will destroy the world!"

"Man! Are you high or something? Geez! We don't have time for this!" Zell, the youngest member of the Blitzball team, said. Olette pushed Fujin aside and kneeled over the pool's edge.

"We understand. After all it's been like what, two years since the team has made it to districts. Y'all need your practice." The boys began yelling all at once an insane amount of obscenities and Zell splashed water at Olette in his anger. She jumped back like a snake had tried to take a bite outta her.

"What? Scared of a little water?" Wakka taunted.

"Yea. It's not like you girls can play any better!" Tidus added.

"Oh yea???" Olette screamed.

"Yea," the boys told in perfect unison.

"Hey. If you can prove us wrong, I'll talk to you all willingly," Demyx told as he casually floated around on his back.

"Oh. How childish! Just get outta the pool moron! You're already talking to us," Fujin claimed. Olette folded her arms angrily and added, "We don't have six people anyway. Losers." Demyx sighed and looked at me. His gaze was intense and I felt somewhat intimidated by it. I modestly looked away and felt my cheeks burn.

"I'll do it if Kairi asks me," he said. Olette and Fujin, along with the rest of the team all looked at me like they just realized that I was there.

"Well… hurry up Kairi. Geez, we don't have all day," Fujin said. It was going to take a while. I was having a hard time finding my voice.

"Kairi," Demyx smoothly said. Without looking him in the eye, I helplessly stuttered, "Uh… uh… Would you answer some questions for us… please?"

"Gladly." Without another minute's hesitation, he was out of the pool and dripping water on the lawn as he walked over to me, despite his team's protests.

"Chill guys. It'll only be a second," he said.

"About time smart ass! Now look. Paine's photo album has gone missing and I've been informed that you had taken a peculiar interest in her personal belongings…," Fujin said.

"Hey. Are you assuming that I stole it? I thought these were questions you were asking, not shitty accusations!"

"So, you didn't steal it then?"

"Hell no! I'm not suicidal. I might've looked at it but that was all."

"Why were you looking at it?"

"Because… I wanted to know something about her. She plays guitar right? Well, me and a few friends wanted to start a band and she's one person we'd really like to have in our group." After Demyx disclosed this information, Olette and Fujin exchanged looks with one another. They seemed to be on the verge of laughing their asses off. I failed to see the humor in it. I've heard Demyx play before at one of the school's dances when the hired DJ failed to show up. He was good. Real good.

"Did you notice anyone else that had the book?" Olette asked.

"Mm…Yea acutally. Larxene. She seemed really interested in this one photo of Paine and Yuffie… yea. That was one of my favorites too."

"Whatever. Thanks. Come on. We're going to ask your sister about Larxene," Fujin said as she already began walking out the way we'd come. Olette followed but I lingered for a moment. Demyx smiled at me. It was a nice smile. A pleasant smile. It was a smile that made me want to swoon.

"Anyway. I'm sorry that you didn't go yesterday. It was really fun," he told. I felt my spirits slowly die miserable, painful deaths from his tone.

"Yea… I'm sorry too…"

"Ah well. I'll just have to take you swimming sometime. That way I can have you all to myself. And you can't refuse because I know for a fact that you know how to swim."

"Heh. Well, I'll be looking forward to it."

"As will I. Just name the time and day."

"Well, my schedule's packed right now. I'll get back to you later…"

"Cool. Okay then. See ya," he said. I nodded merrily as I felt my downtrodden spirits once again rise. I turned to leave, but Demyx pulled me by the forearm, spinning me back around. Before I knew it, I was caught in his embrace and my lips were held captive by his own. For the first few seconds of the kiss, I must have looked like an idiot. My eyes were wide open in my shock and my body was stiff as I stared at him with disbelief. He seemed oblivious of my uncertainty and continued kissing me. When I saw how concentrated his face was and noticed how soft his lips were, I began to ease into it and kissed him back, eyes closed. He caressed my face in one hand and held my waist close to his own with the other hand. As he deepened the kiss, I felt something bulging from between his waist, and it began protruding impolitely into my personal space. I gasped and broke the kiss when I realized what it was.

"Sorry," he mumbled. His face was red and I tried to pull away in my panic, but he continued to hold me. "Calm down, you'll make it worse…" I took his advice and soon enough Jr. decided to take a chill pill and Demyx let me go. My whole front was soaked from the contact I had made with his still wet body. I pulled at my soggy clothing, feeling the chilly air on my skin.

"Sorry again…," he said. He a small, secretive smile grazed his lips. What did it mean? Why was he showing it to me? There was nothing funny about the matter! I made a mental note to make sure my schedule was never open.

"Whoa hot stuff," Olette said when I finally caught up to them, "Looks like you and Demyx are hitting it off well."

"Whatever. He's a damn pervert! He just got a hard on while he kissed me!"

"Just more proof that he likes you. Some times these things happen without any control. He was probably picturing you naked or something," Fujin said.

"Or in a two piece bikini. He was talking about taking me swimming. I'm not sure I'm going though."

"Oh come on! He likes you! He can't help it that he gets an erection every time he pictures you half naked. Besides, it shrinks in the water. He'd be limp the whole time."

"Fujin. It doesn't matter anyway. I like someone else."

"Oh yea. Who is this mystery guy of yours? Tell us! You're among friends!" Olette said. She was smiling anxiously as she walked backward to watch me intently. I could only watch my feet and smile shyly. I didn't doubt that I was among friends. I clicked easily with Olette and Fujin which was rare for me. Normally, I found myself too different from everyone else to be able to relate to them in any way. It took me three years before I was comfortable enough to tell Selphie when my birthday was and what I wanted. It was hard for me to trust people when people already possessed their own judgments about me before they knew me. For example, I was always categorized as the weird, little sister of Namine. No one wanted to give me a chance.

But Olette and Fujin kicked my ass regardless of the fact that I was Namine's little sister. Everyone knew not to pick on me because she always got her revenge. Not only that, but they took me in as their friend shortly thereafter. It was weird, but I felt like I knew them my whole life.

"Don't laugh if I tell you though…"

"You'll tell us. No 'ifs' about it," Fujin claimed.

"Shut up Fuu! Damn! Okay. Go Kairi. We won't laugh."

"…Well… it's…"

"What? I didn't catch it! What'd she say Fuu?"

"I dunno. Repeat."

"I said… it's… Sora."

"You mean… Sora as in Sora? As in the Sora your sister dates?" Olette questioned. I nodded.

"Uh… yea." They were quiet as they soaked up this information. I felt stupid for admitting it all of a sudden and I sighed.

"Wow… now why would you think you were gay Kairi? You know how to pick 'em." Olette said finally, "Not that I like the guy personally. He treats Roxas like crap. But he is good looking though."

"No shit," Fujin agreed. I smiled.

"So. Yea. I like him a lot… but he goes out with Namine… They've even slept together so…"

"Rough."

"So? You're just as cute as your sister. Steal him. That's what I'd do," Olette claimed. Fujin rolled her eyes, "Slut." The brunette angrily huffed and slapped Fujin's arm.

"But… even if I wanted to I wouldn't know how to go about it."

"It's simple! Grab his attention and become irresistible to him! Like, act sexy, then lead him on, but get another guy to make him jealous. Dangle the other guy in his face for awhile until he breaks down and begs you to be his!!"

"Will that actually work?"

"Oh Kairi. So naïve. Of course it will! You're lucky you have us to guide you."

----

When we arrived at my house, I noticed that Sora's BMW wasn't in the driveway.

"Maybe they left?" I offered. I opened the front door and they walked in without hesitation. "Hey! Anyone home?" No answer.

"Then we'll just wait," I told.

"Dang Kairi. Where are your parents?" Olette questioned.

"At work."

"Well… Are you always alone?" Fujin asked.

"Pretty much. We can go to my room and wait if you want to."

"'Kay," they both exclaimed. On our way up the stairs, I heard Fujin whisper (or try to anyway) to Olette, "I wish I had her parents…"

We waited two hours before I finally saw Sora's car pull up in the driveway. He and Namine got out, carrying bags. Angelo flew out from the back seat of the car. He jumped up at one of the bags Sora was holding and condoms (lots of them) spilled out. Namine laughed and helped him pick them up. My heart clenched painfully. I couldn't explain the feeling. I wasn't mad or jealous… but I was sad. Immensely sad. But why? No good would come of me feeling that way…Okay… I liked him and everything… but… I already knew he was my sister's guy. I knew that before I started liking him… so why did I feel this way?

"Is that them?" Olette asked. I nodded numbly.

"Yea…"

We went downstairs and met the couple at the door. Angelo jumped up on me and noisily barked. Sora gave Namine his bags and pulled Angelo down by his collar. The dog yelped and broke away from his grip in favor of jumping up on my sister, who laughed.

"When did you get back Kairi?" She asked.

"Two hours ago. Where'd you two go?" My tone sounded harsh. My sister and Sora looked at me questioningly.

"We took Angelo to the park… Then we went shopping…," she explained. I glared coldly at the bag she was holding, the one filled with condoms.

"Whatever…"

"Uh… I didn't know you had company over. Hey Olette. Hey Fujin," she said politely.

"Hi," they greeted.

"What's up? Hey Ne'. Give me the stuff. I'll put it away," Sora said. Namine wasted no time in handing over the property and Sora bounded up the stairs, two at a time, until he made it to my sister's room. I watched him go feeling betrayed but I had no idea why…

"We need to talk to you," Olette said.

"Sure."

"Know anything about Paine's missing photo album?" Fujin inquired. Namine's eye twitched. It was the twitch that gave her away. It was a terrible habit she possessed ever since we were little. Whenever she lied, her eye twitched. It was a small twitch that happened only once per lie. If you didn't know her to look for it then any other untrained eye would miss it. But I caught it. I caught her.

"What?"

"Paine's photo album. You were one of the people left at Seifer's place by the time it went missing," Fujin explained, "We have reason to believe that your friend, Larxene, could be in possession of the book. Either her or anyone else in your little circle of friends."

"Why accuse us out of the blue like that?"

"We're not pulling the information from our asses. It took hours of deliberation until it just so happened to be you guys who ended up as our prime suspects. Now, if you or one of your friends has it, I'm gonna hafta ask for it back. You do realize this is Paine we're talking about right? She's fucking crazy," Fujin told. My sister folded her arms coolly and shook her head.

"I don't have it. And neither does Larxene. So there's your answer," she told. I saw another twitch.

"Fine. Just so you know, we're checking up on all of you. It's just a matter of time…" Olette said.

"Whoopty do. Though, right now time isn't on your side. It's late. Go home," Namine ordered. She swung open the front door and beckoned them out with a cock of the head.

"See ya tomorrow guys," I said. They left pointedly glaring at Namine. She slammed the door behind them.

"Next time ask me before you invite some people over."

"Oh. Right. Like you ever told me when Riku was about to pay us a visit…" A look of complete insanity flickered on Namine's face for a split second before she angrily got into my face.

"I don't know what bug crawled up your ass and called it home but I assure you that if you don't get a quick attitude adjustment in the next five seconds, I'm kicking your ass. Got it?" Her angry gaze was scrutinizing and I felt hot sweat trickle down my face.

"That's what I thought," she said and she pushed me. I went flying into the small tray table by the stair case, knocking it on its side as I fell with it. I tasted a metallic substance in my mouth and knew my lip was busted. I wiped the blood on my arm and looked at it. Red. Crimson. Rage! My breathing picked up and I glared at her.

"You little slut!" I cried and I lunged for her. She sidestepped at the last minute and pulled me into a headlock. She started punching me in the stomach and I cried out in my pain. I dug my nails into her arm that was secured tightly around my neck and I drew blood. She screamed and threw me up against the archway into the living room.

"Bitch!" she screamed and I knew that I had really pissed her off. She tackled me to the ground and slapped me in the face nonstop.

"Okay! Okay Namine! I'm done! I'm done!"

"Shut-up!" She started choking me and I could feel my air passages slowly close under her constricting grip around my neck.

"…Namine…," I gasped.

"Namine! Namine get off!" Sora pulled her off of me and I looked at her with tears running down my cheeks as I held my sore neck.

"You stupid little wench! I hate you! I hate you! I wish you were dead!!" Namine screamed as she struggled against Sora's steadfast grip. I got up and stormed to my room slamming my door closed in the process.

I hated her! First she told me what I was and wasn't allowed to do and then she wished death on me! I threw my glass flower vase at the floor in attempt to release my pent up frustrations. It shattered, noisily, into a million pieces and I imagined that it was Namine.

After about ten minutes, I heard the front door slam. I looked out my window and saw Namine walking around outside. She was still pissed as she disappeared down the street. I silently wished a pedophile would abduct her and take her somewhere where she would never be heard from again.

"Kairi? Kairi it's me Sora. I'm coming in." Before I could protest, he was already in my room with Angelo close at his heels. I pretended that he didn't exist as I busied myself with picking up the mess I made. It was hard to ignore him no matter how angry I was. My heart wouldn't let me. He joined me on the ground and proceeded to help me pick up the broken pieces of glass. We were silent and immersed in our tedious work. I tried really hard not to look at him. I didn't want to, especially since whenever I did, I imagined that bag of condoms hit the ground. Tears threatened to fall but I fought them off. He wouldn't get the satisfaction of seeing me cry over him (not that he would find that particularly satisfying).

"…Are you okay?" His voice broke my train of though, but it did nothing to quench the anger and pain in my chest.

"Just fine," I snapped. Somehow I failed to see one rather large piece of glass as I tried to appear too busy to talk with him and it pierced right through the flesh of my hand.

"Oh. Shit," I cussed as blood oozed from my newly opened wound. It burned and I hurried and pulled the shard from my hand. That only caused more pain and more blood to spill. I held my hand and the tears I was fighting back reigned victorious as they cascaded down my cheeks in an example of my anguish. Sora grabbed my hand and asked, "Kairi? Are you alright? Here. Lemme-''

"Don't touch me! Go away!" I cried. He didn't pay any attention to my outburst and easily pulled me up, guiding me to the restroom where he proceeded to run water on my hand.

"Ow!" I screamed. He ignored me again and looked in the medicine cabinet, which was strategically hidden behind the mirror. He pulled out a wrap and some cream.

"Keep your hand under the water a little longer Kairi," he ordered as he searched for other materials. I obeyed reluctantly. When he gathered all the stuff he needed, he made me remove my hand from the water and turned the sink off. He took my hand and used a cotton ball to message disinfectant on the nice gash right in the middle of my palm. I watched him feeling my anger slowly disappear and a blush occupied my cheeks. His face was fixed with determination as he worked and I wondered why he worked so hard at all. I abruptly pulled my hand away.

"I… didn't ask for your help…," I said. He looked me in the eyes and I felt my tough resolve slowly melt away and my heart thumped against my chest in a frantic, pumping. He took my hand into his again and continued to work where he left off, breaking our eye contact in the process.

"Sometimes you may not want help but you need it," he said.

"Why help me anyway? Namine's bleeding. Why don't you go help her?" He looked at me again.

"… I don't get you Kairi. What's going on with you? You're not yourself. All week you've been picking fights with people. Why's that? Is something wrong?" Yes. Everything's wrong. And it all started with your best friend and my sister keeping secrets.

"Yea. There's something wrong…," I said. He looked at me intently and I felt butterflies flutter mercilessly around in my stomach.

"I think I'm gay." We were silent and Sora searched my face with his eyes possibly to see if he could find any hints of me joking or lying, which I was but I made perfectly sure he didn't know it.

"… You're not gay," he said finally. I knew that by now, but I played dumb, "How would you know?"

"You're just not. Trust me. Guys can tell with this kinda stuff. You don't hold any lesbian traits," he explained.

"You don't think it's weird for me to hang out with girls most the time and not have a boyfriend?"

"No. I happen to know that people tend to relate better to people of the same sex as them. And, I guess I am surprised that you don't have a boyfriend. I mean… you're pretty cute." I broke eye contact immediately as I felt my whole face heat up. He chuckled as he proceeded to wrap my hand.

"I always liked how you don't mix easily with the crowd. It makes you stand out. Easy to spot." My heart was singing in my chest and I put a hand there to calm myself before I blacked out or something.

"Ruh… really," I choked out, "I thought… you never paid any attention to me…" He pinned the wrap together, finishing the job on my hand before he answered, "You're not easy to miss." He looked at me and smiled warmly. I couldn't say anything. He _did_ pay attention to me?

"Sora…," I mumbled.

"Yea?" I didn't know what I wanted to say so I shook my head and said, "Forget it." He sat openly staring at me and I returned his gaze.

"…That's why I don't understand what's going on with you Kairi. It's like everyone's getting to you or something." I felt the tears come back and I once again looked away so I could cry.

"I… I'm sorry… Sora…," I managed to say through my silent sobs. Sora tucked a finger under my chin and forced me to look at him.

"Why do you always apologize to me? What do you have to be sorry for?" Everything and nothing…

"It's… it's complicated… But… I thought… I thought I was keeping a secret to protect someone… someone important to me but… but… it ate at me constantly… and… now it's over but… I don't think I've got a conscience anymore… because I … I really… really am sorry." I cried softly and my body shook with my sobs.

"I… don't mean to take my frustrations out on other people but… I … I'm a horrible person now. Depraved."

"No. No you're not!"

"I am Sora! I am… Hayner… Hayner's about to be kicked out of school because of me… but… he didn't hit me… he never touched me…"

"What?"

"Olette… he raped Olette and Olette was the one who beat me up because I found out about it… but I just figured that she hurt me because he hurt her so… so I… I wanted him punished… and he's being punished…"

"Kairi… why? Why didn't you just tell the truth?"

"I didn't want Olette to get in trouble because Hayner was wrong!"

"Is that the secret you've been hiding?" One of the many so far.

"Yes…" Sora stayed silent and then I felt dirty. I pulled away from his touch.

"You… you probably think lowly of me. I'm sorry…"

"… Apologizing again? When are you going to learn that you can't be sorry because the world is a sick place? Don't apologize for doing what you think is the right thing. This place is so corrupt that it's hard to even find _that_ much in someone. But… I am glad you told me Kairi. Really. Don't take the whole world on your shoulders. You'll be squished under its massive weight." I looked him in the eyes and they sparkled hopefully. His smile that I loved so much was evident and I smiled too.

"Oh… Sora…," I said. Unexpectedly, he pulled me into an embrace and I cried into his shoulder. He was a great guy. He truly was one in a million. I felt myself relax in his embrace and loved the feeling of his body against mine. His strength gave me strength and I found myself attempting to be a little bold. I pulled away from him slightly, and stood on the tips of my toes. My lips brushed against his, gently at first, and then I kissed him. He didn't pull away from me. Instead, he kissed me back.

It felt more right then when Demyx kissed me. Plus, Sora wasn't forceful. He was gentle but passionate at the same time. I wrapped my arms around his neck and savored his warmth. He pulled me closer as he wrapped his arms around my waist. We broke for a quick breath and I shyly looked at him. He looked back at me with a face I never saw him make before. My heart jumped and I tried to pull away from him, thinking that my sudden action wasn't appreciated, but he kissed me again. He used his own body to sandwich me between himself and the wall. A moan escaped from my throat, and he took my opened mouth as an invitation to let his tongue enter. It danced around for a little bit before returning to its rightful mouth. I grabbed a fistful of his hair and loved its softness. He broke the lock his lips had on my own in order to kiss my neck. I thoughtlessly raised a leg to wrap around his waist and his hand trailed from my waist to the bottom of my thigh to hold it there. He slowly gyrated his hips and the butterflies in my stomach started to leave a burning sensation in their wake. The adrenaline was too much.

"Sora…," I mumbled. He kissed me on the mouth again and his idle hand found its way up my shirt and under my bra. I trembled a little from the rush of emotion his actions caused me. My mind was a complete mess. I couldn't believe what we were doing. It seemed so unreal. I didn't want to believe it, but at the same time, I did nothing to stop it.

When we heard the front door slam, we abruptly broke apart. It was the end of the dream and my confusion.

"Sora! I'm back!" Sora looked at me questioningly before answering, "Welcome back!" I heard her enter into the kitchen and I despised her even more. I broke eye contact with Sora because I felt stupid. It was a spur of the moment type thing. He wasn't mine. He seemed to sense my bad mood because he said, "Kairi… I…" I didn't want to hear his excuse. I quickly pushed passed him to go to my room. He followed.

"Go away Sora," I ordered. I turned to slam my door in his face, but he used his foot to stop it.

"Can I say something?" He asked. If it wasn't an excuse then he was going to ask me not to tell anyone. I decided to save him the trouble.

"What?" I spat, "Nothing you say will change the fact that what just transpired between us was a mistake that never should have occurred. You love Namine Sora. She's your girl."

"…But… Kairi. I mean, you can't say that was nothing and pretend it didn't happen!"

"But we will Sora! Because it doesn't fit and it's not fair. No I mean… Just… Just forget it," I said. I broke eye contact and let the meaning of my words marinate in my mind.

Forget… forget… forget…

"…Okay," Sora said after a period of silence. I nodded.

"Nothing happened. Right?"

"…Right." He said he agreed but at the same time he still held that hungry look in his eyes. I ignored it.

"Please… Sora-" Before I knew what was happening, he kissed me again. I savored the feeling of his lips pressed against mine. I probably wasn't going to be feeling them anymore after this. After a few minutes we stopped and Sora looked at me.

"Kairi-"

"Sora! Are you hungry?" Sora answered my sister but didn't take his eyes off of me, "No!"

"Sure?"

"Yea!" I shook my head.

"Sora… Please. I can't hide another secret…"

"Kairi."

"Besides… you're planning on sleeping with her tonight aren't you? That's why you bought all those condoms?" He didn't answer. His silence filled my heart to bursting with disappointment. I nodded numbly and took a deep, wavering breath.

"Right… Excuse me Sora." Without hesitation, I slammed the door in his face.


	7. Chapter 4 Pt III

_**Chapter 4: Finders. Keepers.**_

_**Part III: Conclusion**_

I learned that it was better to let things go under certain circumstances. Like how Namine let Riku go and Olette dumped Roxas. Sometimes, the pain was too unbearable and so it was better left untouched; ignored. Sora was Namine's guy. She loved him and he loved her. And me… I was moving on. I decided it was better to let the person you love go because they also happened to be the cause of your pain. I rather have neither than both. It wasn't worth it.

I told Olette so over the phone Sunday morning and she agreed.

"It sucks right?"

"Bad," I agreed.

"Well, I got some good news for you Kai. We found the book. That Larxene heifer had it after all."

"I could've told you that."

"Yea. But good thing though because Paine is coming home earlier than expected."

"Hm," I mumbled.

"Oh. Cheer up Kai! Just think, there's lots of other guys out there dying to have you to themselves."

"Like Demyx," I said more to myself than her.

"Right!" I heard a lot of banging around in Namine's room and then I heard the bathroom door slam shut. The shower came on.

"Listen. I gotta go. Okay?"

"'Kay. Bye."

"Bye." I hung up the phone and got up from my bed. I didn't bother putting on my bath robe. I just walked downstairs in a t-shirt and panties because I wasn't expecting to see Sora raiding our fridge. He was just in his boxers so I got to see the wondrous glory that was his extremely hot body. Just because I decided to give up on him didn't mean I couldn't look at him and like what I saw. But was his semi-nakedness evidence that he spent the night after all?

"Morning," I greeted. He turned around and blushed.

"G… good morning." I casually took a seat at our bar table and watched him as he watched me. I silently hoped he wouldn't bring up last night's accident because that was all it was, an accident. Though I was curious about the reason he kissed me back. I decided I would stay ignorant of the reason because I knew it would only bring unnecessary pain.

"How's your hand?" He asked politely. I rotated my wrist and squeezed my fingers into a fist without flinching.

"Good. You saved my life miracle doctor. Thanks to you I get to see another day!"

"Yea. Okay. I could do without your sarcasm," he said. Angelo rubbed up against my bare leg and I jumped because he was another guest I didn't expect to see.

"Silly dog! Go away! Go on," I said. Angelo just stood by me with his tongue hanging out of his mouth, tail wagging.

"I love dogs. They're so loyal and less complicated then people," I said. I didn't mean for my comment to be taken offensively, but Sora seemed to interpret it that way and he once again directed his attention to me.

"Kairi. You kissed me first," he said.

"What?"

"_What?_" he mocked, "You heard me. You can't get mad at me because you kissed me and then decided to forget about it."

"What?? Oh don't you dare put that on me! It takes two people to kiss! Besides you were the one with your hand up my shirt!" Sora blushed and occupied himself with the refrigerator again. Since he brought it up I decided I was entitled to know what had been eating at me since the kiss, "Why'd you kiss me back Sora?" No answer. The food seemed to take up much of his attention. I threw a sponge at the back of his head in attempt to regain his attention. My plan proved successful because he looked at me while he held his head.

"It's not important now right? It's not supposed to have been forgotten remember?"

"Don't play with me Sora! You brought it back up! Give me an answer!"

"… Well… You were crying… I felt bad… And… You were crying…," he stumbled. Oh. He kissed me because he felt like he owed it to me?

"Oh. Wow. Okay. Whatever. Don't give me your pity because I don't want it. Y'know what you _can_ do? Get me one of those condoms you bought yesterday. I think I'll pay my buddy Demyx a visit. At least he kisses me because he likes me!"

"… You kissed Demyx?"

"It's none of your business."

"You're not serious."

"Don't tell me what I am and am not!"

"Where do you get off trying to make me into the bad guy?? You… you kissed me first Kairi! Why'd you do that?" Ah. He turned the tables. But I didn't have to answer him. I got up from my seat and proceeded to leave the room. In two strides, Sora had walked up on me and grabbed my arm.

"Let go!" I snapped.

"Give me an answer. Why'd you kiss me? I want the truth Kairi." The truth… the truth… The truth was that I liked you and you're the first guy to ever make me feel that way. And now I decided to move on because I can't have you.

"Sora," I started. My voice was soaked in my sorrow and sounded nothing like me, "It was a spur of the moment type of thing…"

"… Bullshit," he claimed. Why could he see right through me every time? I tried to yank free of his grasp, but to no avail.

"Lemme go… this is stupid. It's so stupid," I cried.

"… Maybe. But… I don't want to just blow what happened off Kairi. I won't and don't ask me to."

"… Do what you want. I'm going back to my room." I told and finally yanked my arm from his grip. I turned my back and went back upstairs to my room.

I felt really dumb.

"_You're too soft Kairi,"_ Olette's voice was screaming in my head, _"Steal him!"_ But… did I have it in me? Should I let him go or make him mine? Namine came into my room in her bathrobe and I just ignored her. My lip was still sore.

"Kairi. I don't care if you're still mad at me… I just wanted to say sorry anyway. You didn't deserve that."

"Whatever." My feelings were still hurt, but not so much because of her as much as a certain spiky haired boy. Namine smiled softly and threw her wet wash rag at me.

"Stop being a dodo head," she demanded. I threw the towel back at her, starting to feel a little better.

"Go away! You're dripping on my carpet!"

"Whatever," she said. She shook her head and water flew everywhere.

"Namine!" She stopped and laughed merrily.

"That's what you get sour puss." Just then, Sora joined us. He was fully dressed and he had Angelo on a leash. He looked at me for a split second before looking at Namine and saying, "I'm going now." Namine pouted and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt dramatically.

"But Sora," she whined. I watched them and I felt my happy feelings die once more. Sora kinda glanced at me before grabbing Namine's hands lovingly and rubbing his forehead against hers.

"I'll talk to you later. But I really gotta go now. My mom and dad are probably bitching a fit. Not to mention, but I gotta find Roxas."

"Oh. You're not mad at him anymore?"

"No," Sora answered plainly.

"Okay. Fine. I guess I can let you go," Namine said, "But not without a kiss."

"You're so spoiled."

"And you made me that way." Watching them was like watching a soap opera with bad acting. I tried not to laugh. They kissed noisily but I ignored them. Angelo broke loose from Sora's grip and wandered over to me. I patted him, sad that he had to go at least. When the two drama queens finally broke loose, Sora noticed his missing dog and saw that he was with me.

"Come on Angelo. Geez," he commanded. The dog barked but made no attempts to obey his order. Grumpily, Sora stomped over to me and grabbed Angelo's leash. The dog whined, but Sora ignored him and instead settled to look at me.

"Bye Kairi," he said.

"Bye Angelo," I said, "I'll miss _you_." The dog barked and Sora simply nodded and pulled Angelo away as he left the room. When Namine and I were left alone, she looked at me with a befuddled look.

"Why are you being mean to Sora again? I thought you'd grown outta that."

"Well… what can I say? He irks a nerve."

"Oh. Well. Get used to him because he's gonna be your brother-in-law one day…"

"Oh joy." I acted tough on the outside but inside… well inside I was like a confusing jigsaw puzzle in which the pieces couldn't be put together in the right order no matter how hard someone tried. Had I really decided to push him away? Was it really that easy?

"Anyway. Lemme get dressed and then I gotta talk to you about something." She left my room to go next door to her own and then she came in through the bathroom that connected our rooms together.

"That was fast." But it wasn't hard to throw on some underwear and a shirt. Namine shrugged and leapt onto my bed.

"Hey!" I cried as I swayed with the springiness of the mattress.

"Okay Kairi. Look. I know you hang out with Olette and Fujin and everything, but what I'm about to show you, you can't tell them anything about. I don't care if they threaten to shave your head and throw you in front of a moving train! Don't say anything to anyone." If it was that big of a deal, I wasn't sure that I wanted to know about it.

"Uh…"

"Look!" What she showed me was completely mind boggling and certainly something unworldly. She held in her hand a picture. An old picture probably taken the summer before Namine's freshmen year. It was a picture of Paine and Yuffie… kissing opened mouth. My jaw dropped.

"What… the… hell?" I stuttered. Namine shook her head.

"That's not the worst of it… well it is but look at the rest of them." She proceeded to show me more pictures of Paine and Yuffie… Paine and Yuffie… and way too much Paine and Yuffie.

"This is disgusting!" I cried.

"Right."

"I didn't know Paine was a dyke!"

"Duh Kairi. How else is she able to terrorize Seifer? Not a lot of people can do that." I stared at the pictures in disbelief and complete awe.

"Where did you find these?"

"Well, you probably know by now that Larxene did have the photo album. We took these from it."

"You _stole_ Paine's _pictures_??? She's gonna _kill_ you!"

"They're just copies. We're not dumb." It was a known fact that Paine was violent. Really extremely violent. She once hospitalized a boy for calling her ugly. He nearly died. That was just _one_ of the many reasons she no longer went to our school, or any other school in the district now. You just didn't mess with Paine unless you wanted… pain. Or unless you were a fourteen year old Yuffie who Paine found attractive…

"This is crazy! Why do you have them?" I bellowed. Namine flipped her hair behind her and grinned nonchalantly.

"Well, if I tell you, promise not to say anything to anyone else. Promise?" I nodded dumbly, "I promise!"

"Good. So, Larxene, Tifa, and I are getting revenge for Yuffie telling that BS to Sora the other day. Think she'll be able to live this down?" Namine said as she held up the picture of Paine and Yuffie kissing as emphasis to her point.

"Well. She might get away by saying Paine forced her to be her sex toy," I offered. Namine slapped me upside the head with the picture. "Hey!"

"Oh please! No one will believe that when see this one…" She held up a picture of Paine and Yuffie smiling together at the camera. Paine had her arms wrapped around Yuffie affectionately and I almost barfed.

"I guess you're right…"

"But this is a great way to get her back right? Of course! I'm frickin' brilliant!"

"You are…" My sister hugged me excitedly and gathered her photos then left my room.

Well. If my weekend taught me anything, it was that whatever it was you went looking for, you would find it eventually, whether it was a missing book, a plot for vengeance, or a reason to love. But if you weren't careful, if you didn't try to look, you would most certainly miss out and regret it.


	8. Chapter 5 Pt I

_**Chapter 5: Revenge of the Backstabbers**_

_**Part I: I've got your back**_

"Come on Kairi! Get up!" I struggled to open my eyes, but it was such work that I simply ignored my sister's pleas and went back to sleep.

"Get up!" Her cries were so incessant and annoying…

"I _am_ up…"

"Then _get _up!"

"Shut up!"

"Kairi!" Namine pinched my nose and it wasn't long before I ran out of breath and bolted upright in my bed looking around dumbfounded.

"Good. Now that you're awake…"

"Wha…?"

"There's a surprise for you!"

"Wha…?" Namine thumped my head with her fore finger, causing me to cringe.

"A surprise Kairi! Are you dumb?"

"Yay… whose birthday is it?"

"… Oh hurry and wake-up already Kairi!" Namine got up and left the room and I laid back down to sleep. Not too soon afterward, I felt someone shake me awake and I moaned tiredly.

"Kairi. Sweetie. It's noontime."

"Mom?... Noontime! Oh my gosh!" I got up and rushed into the bathroom. I stripped down to my birthday suit and hopped into the shower. I was no longer drowsy but wide awake and alert. How could that much time have passed in that split second instant? I couldn't afford to be late to school! It was report card time! I was barely passing and not only that but I couldn't get anymore tardies without facing ISS. Noontime… I missed four classes by now and then I would be late to Science with Mr. Ansem! He would deduct points, send me to the office, call my mom, and get me suspended with a smile on his face.

When I jumped out of the shower, I hurriedly blow dried my hair and brushed my teeth. As I rushed to get both things done, I heard faint laughter coming from my room. I slowed down and once I finished, I reluctantly looked at the digital clock sitting peacefully on the sink. It read: 6:15 am. I was pissed when I realized that I had been the victim of pranking. I opened the bathroom door and cautiously walked out while dreading the fact that I was going to face utter humiliation in the form of childish delight at my own expense.

"Ha! Did you see her go mom? Oh my gosh, it was like seeing the dead rise!" Namine exclaimed. My mother laughed softly as she watched me in the doorway. At least I wasn't wrong about my mother being there, though it was strange seeing her in my room and hearing her laugh. Not that her laugh was as hideous and loud as Namine's; on the contrary, it was soft and angelic. It was weird seeing her have time enough to laugh.

"Hey Kairi," she said, "What's with that look? It was only a joke. You know how you like to sleep. It was the only way I knew how to get you up. Sorry sweetie."

"What are you doing here?" The words basically fell from my mouth before I had time to catch them. My mother smiled anyway and answered, "Is it so unusual?" Yes.

"Well… it's just…"

"You're usually asleep when she gets home that's all," Namine explained. She laid her head on my mother's shoulder and my mother in turn laid her head on hers affectionately. If anyone saw them on the streets, they might mistake them for sisters. My mother was gorgeous. She had an eternal beauty about her despite being in her early forties. Namine was a mirror image. She looked like she could pass as our mother when she was that age. I looked like… I didn't belong.

"Anyway, mom has your surprise Kairi. I'll let her tell you about it and I'll go get breakfast ready!" Namine gave mom a quick peck on the cheek and left the room. I felt awkward being alone with her. Given, she was the woman who gave me life, but she seemed more like a stranger to me.

"Come here Kairi. Don't just stand there," she commanded. I did as I was told and sat beside her. She observed me for a few minutes before tucking some of my hair behind my ear and saying, "Your hair grew back so fast."

"Well, it _was_ cut last year."

"Yeah. Still, I wish my hair grew that fast." I didn't see why it mattered. She was pretty long, short, red, brunette, or black. I started to feel irritated and I asked her, "What's the surprise?" She stopped playing with my hair and clasped her hands together in her excitement.

"Well. You've always wanted a little sister right?" Yea, back when I was five and Namine was seven beating the tar outta me any chance she got just because she was older. I didn't think I wanted a punching bag anymore.

"Uh…" Then I thought about what she was suggesting… But… She couldn't… I mean… Dad was never home with her unless it was a holiday and the last holiday we had was Turkey Day. That was a week ago. It was basically December tomorrow… I didn't see a bulge in her gut. But did you even see a bulge when you were a week and three days pregnant?

"Kairi? Are you okay?"

"You're… pregnant?" She laughed.

"Heavens no! I've got two beautiful girls and that's enough!"

"So… why ask if I still wanted a little sister?"

"Well… one of my patients is… well… not doing so hot and his daughter has no other known living relative and since we've known each other so long, I kinda said that she could stay here."

"… So what are you telling me?"

"I invited my friend's daughter to come live with us until further notice." She smiled warmly and I felt like slapping that cozy grin right off her face. I didn't understand. She was barely home to take care of me and Namine, yet she felt obliged to invite a complete stranger into our home for that very reason! I hoped she didn't think that I'd be cleaning up after this girl or feeding her or anything like that because the point was that I didn't know her, frankly didn't care to know her, and didn't want needy strangers in my house!

"Mom!" I cried. She looked at me with a perplexed expression and suddenly I heard someone very noisily run up the stairs. No sooner were they finished with the stairs were they at my bedroom door. Without knocking, this mystery person pried open my door and let it bang up against my wall. A girl stood in the doorway. A very pretty girl. She was young. She could be no older than fourteen or fifteen. (Heh. Like I was so ancient). I was fifteen last year after all. My mom smiled brightly and waved her hand in a beckoning fashion.

"Come on in Rikku!" The girl dropped a heavy duffel bag onto the floor, which created a loud thudding noise, and then she ran open armed towards my mother.

"Mrs. Trepe!" She cried. My mother caught her in an embrace and squeezed her tightly while she laughed good heartedly. Who was this little person? It couldn't be _the_ girl could it? Already? I still didn't grasped the concept of another person living with us! Especially someone as noisy as her.

"Oh Rikku! How are you darling?" My mom asked as she released her. Rikku smiled brightly and replied, "I'm just fine! The flight here was a little tiresome though. And then the cab ride over was a little boring…"

"Did you have enough cab fair?"

"Yes!" Could she be any louder? I huffed a little louder then I intended and got both of their unwanted attentions.

"Oh I'm sorry Kairi! This is the girl I was just telling you about. Her name is Rikku." I hated her name alone. I had too many problems with people named Riku.

"Rikku, this is my youngest daughter Kairi. Forgive her if she seems a little antisocial. I kind of forced her awake." Or maybe I really was antisocial and just didn't like you Rikku.

"Hi!" She exclaimed. She hugged me and pulled away just as fast.

"You're really pretty! Just like Mrs. Trepe!" Was she trying to flatter me?

"Are you serious?"

"Yea," she said and added low enough for only me to hear, "A lot better then your sister downstairs. She kinda freaks me out because she looks like plastic." I nearly erupted into a whole fit of laughter, but I caught myself because that was a cruel thing to say about someone that she didn't even know. Then I thought about my reaction to her. Wasn't I being just as cruel by not wanting to give her a chance? My mom looked at both of us fondly and said, "Alright. Now that the introductions are over, I need to ask if she can settle in here with you Kairi. I haven't quite gotten her room ready yet." I looked at Rikku and she smiled brightly while bringing her hands together in prayer fashion.

"Sure. Why not?" I couldn't believe how this girl made me like her in a split second without doing anything dramatic.

"Oh thank-you!" Without asking, she abruptly used her small form to separate me and my mother to lay on my bed lazily.

"Oh… I'm so tired…" Not long after she said the words did she begin snoring softly. I watched her for a moment before looking at my mother who looked back at me.

"Wow," I commented, "Is that how she really is?"

"Yes. Don't worry. You'll get used to it," she replied. Quickly glancing at her wrist watch, she sighed and patted my leg in a rushed display of affection, "Listen. She's going through a lot right now. So be helpful Kairi. Please?"

"Uh… okay."

"Good. Now. I don't want her to be home alone so take her with you to school. She'll be registered by tomorrow so just introduce her to some people. Let her get comfortable." For some reason, I felt that Rikku wouldn't need any help with that. My mom smiled.

"Thank you Kairi," she said. She kissed my forehead and then left the room. I looked at Rikku and felt envious. I wished I could go back to sleep.

I went downstairs after I got dressed and saw mom rush out the front door, slamming it behind her. Namine was at the dining room table eating a bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit. I sat across from her.

"Where's mine?"

"I ran out of materials. We gotta go shopping after school today. So anyway, how'd you like the surprise?"

"Aw, Rikku's pretty nice. I like her."

"I knew you would. She reminds me of you. I think she's a little annoying."

"Oh. Thanks a lot. Now I know what you think about me. Give me a piece! I'm soo hungry!" Namine tore off half of her last bite and let me have it. It was gone in a chew and a swallow.

"Oh no. What's Rikku gonna eat?" I asked.

"The milk is still good. She can have cereal I guess…"

"That's lame."

"We're not a luxury hotel! And anyway, I'm done talking about her. Look. We're getting a ride with Larxene, who'll be here in fifteen minutes and we're gonna go talk to Yuffie because she has cheerleading practice in the morning. I need you to keep the original copies of the pictures for me 'k? In case she tries to steal our back ups or something."

"But why do I have to be with you while you do it?"

"Because… I need moral support." That was the crappiest excuse I've ever heard, if it was even an excuse.

"Right…"

"Stop being an ass and just do it Kairi."

"Okay. I'll come with you! But let me go wake Rikku up. Mom said she has to come with us."

"Oh pooh. Well, don't worry. I'll find some unsuspecting freshman to dump her onto. She won't be a problem." If anything, I found that the problem wasn't with Rikku. The biggest problem would be Namine's revenge. I mean, why'd she always drag me along for all her schemes? Hadn't she asked me not to involve myself with her problems anymore? Or did she figure Yuffie was just as much a problem for me as herself? I wouldn't argue with that logic especially since she was being a butt hole about me and Demyx, who I find less appealing with each meeting.

When I went to wake Rikku up, I found her already awake and sitting on my bed with a solemn face.

"Hey," I greeted, "Something wrong?" She kinda took a large, wavering breath before she looked at me with a smile and answered, "It's actually really hard sleeping in a foreign bed… but I'm fine."

"Sorry… we'll get you your own mattress after a while. But listen, my mom wants me to take you to the school today. I'll show you around and everything okay? But you need to get ready now because our ride will be here any minute."

"Okay. Thanks Kairi!" She hurried and unpacked some things from her bag and then disappeared into the bathroom to get ready.

It must have been at least fifteen minutes before she exited the bathroom, fully refreshed and smiling.

"Lets go." And we did.

Larxene and Tifa arrived a little bit after we gathered our school things and we all proceeded to leave for school. On our way there, Rikku was all smiles as she soaked in the sights of suburbia. I watched her, finding that excitement to be rather refreshing. My sister had given a hurried introduction for her to her friends who appeared to have cared less. They all sat around talking about things I found pointless at this point, boys.

"Yea. Cloud's acting like a real jackass. He keeps talking about how stressful running a company is. He always uses the company as an excuse to not spend time with me but he's not the one running the company anyway." Tifa said. She pulled at her ebony locks while staring out the wind shield as if she was remembering in that very instant Cloud's exact words. Larxene stopped at a red light and huffed agitatedly as she turned around to look at her friend.

"I told you that he was a dick Tiff. Know what I'd do to him? I'd tie him up and rape him."

"The hell? Larxene stop being a freak for one moment."

"I'm not. Look, you're complaining that he won't spend time with you right? Okay so tie him up and force him to. Then you can't complain about not being satisfied because you can have him any time that you want." Tifa and Namine exchanged looks with one another before they started laughing their heads off. The light turned green and Larxene once again focused on the road.

"What a twisted logic. You crazy whore!" Tifa said after she finished laughing. Larxene just shrugged and concentrated on her driving.

"Well. It works."

"I guess. But if you ask me, I just think it's time you and Cloud broke up. He'll be a freshman in college next semester! Not only that but he will be a very busy man because then he will actually be _running_ the company and not _helping_ Sephiroth run it," Namine explained, "He'll want to start seeing older women. He'll want to see less of you. Wanna know how I know? Well, the evidence is in the now! Come on Tiff. You can do so much better."

"Well… I guess… Does sleeping with Sephiroth count as better?"

"You little skeez! You didn't!" Larxene exclaimed.

"Actually I did it. But just once. You know for twin brothers they are two totally different people in the bed room." They all laughed and I sat back mortified at their conversation. To them, guys were just play things. Easy to get and easy to throw away. But were someone else's feelings really disposable? Now I see why they were always talked about at school. They really did get around faster than a pack of cigarettes.

"Welcome to the I- can-pull- two- guys- at- once- Namine's- area- of- expertise club. What's your preference? Two guys who are twin brothers or two guys who are best friends? Make your choice," Larxene said sarcastically. The other two were quiet as if they actually felt guilty about her accusations.

"Hey. You don't get to judge us! You cheated on Marluxia with your own cousin _and_ got knocked up," Namine said angrily. No reply.

"…Good thing the baby was still born. And at the time Seifer didn't count as my cousin because Paine's mom hadn't married his father yet. Stupid bitch."

"Right… So sorry. My mistake. And let me just make it perfectly clear that what happened between me and Riku was nothing more than a mistake. He came on to me. But now that he's over with, Sora and I are doing a lot better. We even had sex last night so ha!" Larxene looked pissed but didn't say anything. Tifa bit her bottom lip as she grew uneasy around her two friends. An uncomfortable silence soon ensued.

"…We're the skankiest bitches in all the land," Larxene said after a while and she added, "I wouldn't be surprised if we started scheming on each other's boyfriends soon."

"Here, here!" Namine added, but she said it more as joke. Larxene sounded half joking and half serious. She _did_ have a crush on Sora… I'm surprised Namine hadn't caught it.

"At any rate, after we punish Yuffie, lets punish the whore who told Yuffie about me and Riku," Namine suggested.

"Sure. I got your back," Larxene told.

"Yea. Me too," Tifa added. They started laughing again and I couldn't believe them. Maybe they all got a long so well because the three 'perfect' girls knew very well that they were actually very far from perfection, and seeming perfect was a battle. These girls could joke around about one another's imperfections just so each could silently say to herself, "At least I'm not _that_ bad." Was this really a friendship, or a covered up self worth competition? As in, who was the worst girl? Or who could sleep peacefully at night? Was that what this relationship was all about? And then they banded together to destroy whatever unlucky person found out about their imperfections.

I thought about the way Namine talked about Riku. Her words were so cold and yet didn't she love him? Maybe loosing him, the guy she loved, was a punishment to herself for being the way she was? I felt guilty for judging her. She did a good job of that herself. Maybe that was why she valued Sora so much. He rarely judged her and stood by her despite the things people have said about her. Suddenly, I felt worse for kissing him… loving him…

She told me that her problems weren't my problems, and yet she deliberately dragged me along on her guilt trip. I decided I'd ride with her for a moment, just to have her back, but I wouldn't let her get me tangled within her affairs.

_**Part II: Back Pain**_

When we got to the school, it was deserted save a few people that had early morning practices. I saw Olette running her daily mile with some others who were on track as well. She waved at me without getting a hitch in her pace and I waved back. I felt a little subconscious though… I _did_ have copies of the pictures that she and Fujin tried so hard to keep out of the hands of the public after all.

"Who's that?" Rikku asked innocently.

"My friend Olette. I'll introduce you to her later," I explained. We both watched as she faded with the rest of her team as they circled around to the other side of the school building.

"She's fast," Rikku stated.

"Hey! Kairi! We're over here," I heard Namine yell. I turned around and saw her, Larxene, and Tifa as they made their ways over to the huddle of cheerleaders. I pulled Rikku along with me as I went over to join them. Why was I walking into another one of Namine's stupid ideas? I was all for making Yuffie miserable but didn't that kind of stuff always find a way back to you? Karma. That's what it's called. I was no fan of negative karma. I didn't want to be punished for my actions later on… maybe I could be there with my sister without actually involving myself. When Yuffie saw us coming, she gathered her posse', Aerith and Yuna, and met us half way. The talking didn't start right away. It was pure silence as we stood gawking at each other angrily.

"Hi! My name is Rikku! I'll be starting school here tomorrow!" The ice had been cracked by Rikku's outburst and everyone looked at her with confusion, except Aerith who smiled sweetly.

"Hi Rikku. I'm Aerith. I'm a junior. What grade will you be in?"

"Well… guess. What grade do I look like I'll be in?"

"… Eighth?" Yuna guessed.

"Ha! But I'm not! I'm a junior too! Maybe we'll have the same classes together! Nice meeting you Aerith! What about you, what's your names?" I looked at Rikku quizzically. I would never have guessed she was a junior! There had to be some kind of catch. She was younger than me right? I felt that I didn't know her well enough to question her so I didn't pry. Yuna and Yuffie exchanged looks as though debating whether or not to follow Aerith's example and welcome the new comer or not.

"I'm Yuna," the brunette said finally.

"Yuffie. Isn't this so cliché? Namine's added yet another peon to her clique of skank bitches."

"Excuse me?" Rikku asked angrily. Yuffie crossed her arms coolly and said, "Well. Maybe not. You _are_ new after all. Word of advice, you don't want to be seen anywhere near Namine. She's bad news."

"Or so she says. Which reminds me. I heard you've been talking to Sora. Last I checked, I told you to stay away from him. Your mouth's your own enemy Yuffie and I tried to help you but I guess some people just won't be helped!" Namine snapped. I pulled Rikku to the side with me, shaking my head as a silent indication that told her didn't want to be involved. Yuffie flipped some hair back and ginned.

"Now, you're not being fair to Sora. I was just trying to help him too by letting him know what a whore you are," she explained, "My bad for being a good friend. By the way, seen Riku around lately?" I saw Namine's face contort itself into a disgusting display of her anger before she calmed down and pulled the photos from her pockets.

"That all depends. Are you still seeing Paine on the side?" Namine questioned. She smiled spitefully when she saw that she got the desired effect from Yuffie that she wanted when the girl's jaw dropped and her eyes bugged out at seeing the photo of her and Paine kissing.

"Where… where…?"

"Nice picture huh? But look at the rest of these!" Namine told Tifa and Larxene to pull out their hidden photos and all the color drained away from Yuffie's face when she saw them.

"But… how…?"

"If you don't want those to miraculously find their ways out into the open then you'll stay away from Sora! Hm. And while I'm at it, tell me who told you about me and Riku in the first place," Namine demanded. Yuffie sighed a little in an example of her anguish and her friends gave her sympathetic looks, but she only grinned.

"You think you got me by the throat or something huh Namine? I don't care who sees those pictures because I'm not ashamed of the dirt I've dug into. But you… you are ashamed of your dirty little secrets, which are more than you're actually letting on. Don't worry, I'm sure Sora will end up finding out what kind of girl you really are by the end of this year. Whether or not it'll me or anyone else telling him I can't say for sure. But he will find out," Yuffie told. I saw Namine actually flinch a little but then she regained her composure and shook her head.

"I've broken up with Riku. Nothing's going on anymore. And even if there was, it can't be any worse than this," she held up the picture, "Hm. I'm gonna take your threat seriously Yuffie, and I'm going to take the proper precautions to make sure you don't open up your mouth ever again," she pocketed the picture and walked away with her two followers tagging along. Rikku and I walked away too. When I looked back, I saw Yuffie had started crying and Aerith and Yuna proceeded to comfort her.

"We gotta find out who's leaking my business to the public. And then we can catch them at their worse as well," I heard Namine say. I hoped she wasn't including me in any of her scams. I didn't want to be apart of any of them. The photos in my pockets were starting to feel like they weighed a ton. If I was apart of anymore of her schemes… adding on the extra weight of such burdens… well… it'd be an awful lot of weight to put on.

We followed my sister and co. to the gymnasium where the Blitzball team was holding practice. The big water dome was up and I saw the boy's figures as they expertly treaded the water. Sora was in possession of the ball and everyone was coming after him but he couldn't be caught. He tossed the ball to Riku who kicked it forcefully into the opposing team's net. He and Sora exchanged fives and I felt myself smile subconsciously. They were the unstoppable duo on the team. Hopefully they'd take us all the way to districts this year and then maybe the tournaments even!

"Wow! Your Blitzball team must be good! Look at this. This is crazy!" I turned from the game to see that Rikku had stopped to look at the trophy display near the entrance. Namine and her friends rolled their eyes, as though the information wasn't something new.

"Yea. Right. But look at the last date on the most recent trophy. It says 2004. We haven't won anymore for four years," I explained, "We suck." Suddenly I heard water splash and turned away from Rikku to see the team jumping from the dome and falling onto the floor none to gracefully. Tifa and Larxene backed away as though the boys were carrying some fatal disease. It was just water. Last I checked it wasn't fatal… most the time.

"Wow!! _This_ is the Blitzball team!?" Rikku exclaimed excitedly. I nodded my head to clarify her rather good assumptions and saw her gawk at them with a slight blush on her cheeks. Sora shook the water from his hair to stop it from dripping into his eyes and some landed on me.

"Hey!"

"Hey Namine, Larxene, Tifa," He greeted and then he looked at me and I felt my heart bubble with excitement, "Kairi…"

"Hey babe," Namine said. She cupped the crook of his neck and pulled him down so that she caught his lips in a passionate kiss. I wasn't the only one that felt offended by their open display of affection. Larxene and Riku sorta trembled with anger. When the couple finally broke away for air, Sora asked, "Geez, what'd I do right? I get a surprise visit and a kiss without having to beg."

"You're so goofy!" Namine claimed. She hit him playfully on the shoulder and he caught her hand with his own to pull her into a tight embrace. I turned away, not wanting to see anymore… If only he knew what kind of person she really was… The hairs on my neck began to stand, and my sixth sense kicked in. I felt someone staring at me. I looked back up and saw that it was Demyx. I felt my cheeks heat up and I knew I was blushing. We looked at each other for a few minutes and I didn't know why we did. I was still angry about the kiss that happened Saturday. I broke our intense gaze to look at my feet.

"So, anyway, what's your name?" Sora asked, directing the comment towards Rikku. He ignored my sister's halfhearted protests about not wanting to catch his wetness as he looked at Rikku, who played dumb by looking around like he was talking to someone else, but then she said, shyly, "I…I…I'm Rikku… I'm new here… starting tomorrow." Ah. Someone had a weakness for cute guys. I never heard her stutter until now that she was in the presence of a team full of gorgeous boys.

"Nice name. I'm Sora, Namine's boyfriend. And this is the Blitzball Team."

"I'm Demyx."

"And I'm Wakka!"

"Hi I'm Tidus!"

"Sup, the name's Zell."

"Axel."

"Nice to meet you all!" Rikku exclaimed merrily before she turned to look at Riku no doubt noticing that he didn't introduced himself. He didn't seem interested in doing so either as he proceeded to towel dry his long platinum hair.

"So are you interested in sports Rikku? Cuz if you are then let me know. I've been trying to get a girl to play on the team for the longest! We can get double the funding with a girl on the team," Sora said.

"Neat. I'll definitely think about it," Rikku said politely, returning her attention to the conversation at hand. Suddenly she added, "Oh! But you know, maybe more girls would sign up if you guys won more often!" I bit my bottom lip in an attempt to subdue the growing urge to crack up at her comment. Larxene and Tifa gave Rikku shocked looks as did Namine and the whole team seemed embarrassed.

"Wha…what?" Sora asked.

"I'm just sayin'. Well, because Kairi brought it to my attention that you haven't gone to districts for the last four years. I just think more people would take you seriously if you applied yourselves more." Everyone's attention was now focused on me. I giggled nervously and kinda hid behind Rikku. I heard a snicker and looked at the other Riku. He was laughing at the situation. I didn't find it funny. Not at all. Or was he laughing at Rikku? I saw them exchange looks, each with a shy smile playing on their lips.

"Dang we're not all that bad Kairi," Demyx stated angrily.

"Yea. And that's all gonna change this year so chill out Kairi," Sora snapped. I shrugged and rolled my eyes.

"I'll believe it when I see it."

"Come on! We gotta hit the showers before school starts!" Wakka cried. The team rushed off in the direction of the locker rooms, but Demyx lingered. Sora guided Rikku and Namine away, all the while talking Rikku's ear off about the benefits of being on the team as a means to coax her to join. Larxene and Tifa followed after them and then it was just me and Demyx together. He stepped up to me and I fought the urge to step back.

"Kairi," he said.

"Demyx," I snapped. He flinched a little and winced at my tone of voice.

"Still pissed about that kiss huh?"

"Not so much as other things." I said looking down "there" to make my point.

"Sorry… Really I am. I just can't control myself… I like you Kairi… A lot," he said. My stomach got butterflies and I felt nervous. That's not at all what I was expecting. He was so blunt and so earnest. I blushed again, embarrassed that he confessed his feelings for me out of the blue like that. And as pathetic as it sounded, I didn't know what to think or feel. It _was_ the first time anyone had told me that they liked me so upfront. He stood watching my reaction and he sighed a little.

"Anyway. Here's a make-up present…" I thought he was going to kiss me again but he pulled out a present and placed it in my hand. As I studied the cute pink box it was wrapped in, he leaned in and whispered in my ear, "I hope you like it… And I'm really sorry." He pulled away and smiled before running away to the locker rooms. I didn't know what to think, I didn't know if I wanted the present or not. I didn't know what he meant by giving me something for nothing. I put the present in my backpack and followed his path out of the gym.

"Whoa. You didn't tell me you had a boyfriend… and that he was on the Blitzball team!" Rikku exclaimed. I jumped back up against the wall in my surprise and held my heart.

"You were supposed to be gone!"

"I didn't feel like being a third wheel. Seems like I've been one all morning long!" I blushed knowing that the implication was about my sister and her friends.

"Uh… sorry about that…"

"I'll forgive you… only if you pretend to be my tourist guide and show me around more effectively." I whined and said, "Yes your majesty…" Rikku grinned with her content and I began down the hallway to show her around. I couldn't help but wonder where the Queen Bitches ran off to though… I knew wherever they went trouble was close at their heels.

I never thought our school was really that big, but either it was and I'd just gotten used to it, or Rikku's old school was small because she kept making comments about how huge everything was. Her old school must not have had up-to-date material either because everything she saw intrigued her. The science lab especially. Too bad when I got in there Mr. Ansem was in there talking with some guy I never saw before. He was a young, tan skinned, platinum blonde haired, dark eyed man. I guessed he was a freshman in college. Or he could very well have been one of those student teacher type fellows. I didn't care. I wanted to get out before Mr. Ansem saw me.

"Excuse me Miss Trepe. What are you doing here? Have you come for a much needed and well overdue tutoring session?" he asked. He had a cocky look on his face and I felt the heat once again rise to my cheeks.

"No… I'm just showing a new student around…," I added under my breath, "but it's none of your business." Rikku went over to the desk and shook hands with him.

"I'm Rikku sir. I'll be a junior."

"Really? How old are you?"

"Fifteen. But I was home schooled so I'm ahead of everyone else," she explained. So that was what it was. I didn't feel right asking about it because I thought she'd get offended. Mr. Ansem looked at me then looked at her and then looked back to me.

"Hm. Maybe you can help Miss Trepe here with her studies. She's barely passing with them all."

"Hey a 'D' _is_ a passing grade," I muttered. Rikku smiled brightly.

"Of course! Nice meeting you Mr. Ansem." Rikku dragged me out of the room with ease and I silently thanked her. When we were a good distance from the room she said, "You don't like Mr. Ansem huh?"

"Is it that obvious?" I questioned sarcastically, "No. I hate him."

"He doesn't seem to like you either. Why's that?"

"Because he knows I'm failing his class on purpose."

"What? Why?"

"Because… I know I can pass it. Why do I have to let the teachers know it? I hate how they stress the importance of college and getting scholarships with high GPA's. That's too much stress and I refuse to let them run me," I explained. Rikku smiled sweetly.

"It's your way of getting back at the big guy huh?"

"Right." We were silent as we turned down another hallway, lined with lockers. Rikku studied them and then asked, "Did you know that other guy in the room?"

"What? No. Never seen him before in my life," I said, "Out of curiosity, why'd you ask?"

"Because… he was looking at you funny. That's why I cut it short with Mr. Ansem. That guy gave me the willies!" What a strange development. I didn't notice him looking at me weird. Why was he looking at me? I did't get it. Rikku started laughing and I thought she was gonna say, "I'm only joking!" but she said, "I'm really frickin' hungry!"

"Huh? Oh. Well, the cafeteria's this way."

I took Rikku to the cafeteria where I saw Olette and Fujin. They were sitting at one of the tables in the far back so after Rikku got her breakfast, we maneuvered easily through the large throng of tables to get over to them.

"Hey Kai. What's up? Why were you here so early?" Olette asked.

"Uh… I was just… showing Rikku around. She's new."

"Hi! I start school here tomorrow!" Rikku said.

"Hi. I'm Olette and this zombie is Fujin. I call her Fuu. Don't mind her if she seems a little pissy. She's not exactly a morning person."

"Mwha!" Fujin grumbled, incoherently, with her face kissing the table. She really could be compared to a zombie. I pulled up a seat and so did Rikku. Olette watched me for a moment and I felt my face burn slightly. I lied okay, but I didn't want my sister to get found out… well… actually I didn't want to be found out about working _with_ my sister. I held my cargo pocket subconsciously. The pictures sat there unscathed.

"You okay Kairi?" Olette asked. I guess my guilt was visible. I numbly nodded.

"Yea…"

"Good. But listen, I uh… After I got off the phone with you yesterday, I talked to Roxas…," she said with a small voice. I strained my ears to hear her. She nodded her head towards Rikku, indicating to me that the decrease in volume was because she didn't want her to hear our conversation. I doubt the girl was paying attention to anything but the crappy school breakfast that she was stuffing in her mouth.

"Really? That's good huh?" I said, also in a whisper.

"In a way… I told him about Hayner…," she said, "And I think I got him into some trouble…"

"What are you talking' about?"

"Well… he got into a gang fight… I dunno. Some group Hayner was in, decided to give Roxas some trouble when he tried to confront him about it… I… I mean… I know Sora brought him back home yesterday but… I…" Her voice trailed off and she completely broke down right there. I awkwardly reached across the table to pat her on the back.

"It's okay Olette… So long as he isn't dead…," I offered. Olette looked at me with big, brown, watery eyes and I gave her a small smile.

"See? Everything's okay…"

"…I don't… feel so good…" Before anyone could say or do anything, Olette was up and sprinting to the bathroom. She was out of sight in a few seconds thereafter.

"That's a new record." I looked at Fujin who had miraculously come to life.

"What?" I asked.

"She's been going to the bathroom a lot lately…"

"To throw up!?"

"That's not good for her teeth," Rikku stated. We all looked in the direction of the bathroom.

"…Is Olette doing drugs?" I inquired.

"No! I only let her have some reefer once or twice. She's got no other suppliers besides me so I doubt that," Fujin said, "…I dunno. Maybe it's the after affects of the rape. She's probably not over it at all yet."

"Rape??" Rikku cried.

"The boy's been expelled," I said, as though that would appease the girl's worries or my own fears. Besides, he wasn't expelled on the account of the rape so much as beating the tar outta me (which he didn't). Now he was in a gang and getting into fights for real…After Olette got out of the rest room, the first bell rang and all the students flooded into the cafeteria, either for socializing or eating. We left and went to our lockers following the giant wave of the majority.

First hour, my mind wasn't on the class work. I was still worried about Olette… still confused about Demyx… still wondering about Namine's next actions against Yuffie who didn't sit too far from me now and who was also casting hateful eyes my direction… and I was slightly curious about the looks Rikku and Riku were exchanging between one another during the entire class. I also couldn't help but notice how Sora didn't pay any attention to me. He didn't even look my direction to throw a kind smile, or friendly wave. Had the kiss really created such a giant gulf between us that was so impossible to cross that Sora didn't even want to try to cross it? Was our friendship really that easy to throw away? I felt tears fill my eyes to the brim. Did he know he was hurting me? Was he doing it on purpose? I looked at him longingly, begging him to turn my way but had no such luck.

I knew I said I let him go… but it wasn't as easy doing as it was saying. I still loved him. I couldn't stop loving him. I wished I hadn't told him to forget about the kiss. I wished I hadn't dissed him yesterday. And I wish it was possible to take it all back and let him know how I really felt. That was when he looked at me with those big blue eyes. We stared at one another and I felt so separated from everything else that it seemed like we were the only ones in the room. The teacher's voice even became silent.

A look of concern flickered across his face and I felt a tear drop down my cheek.

"Sora… I…," my voice was so small and was shaking so bad that I doubt he heard me. He seemed interested, imploring me to continue my statement with his eyes. I closed my mouth, unsure if I really wanted to continue, and when I opened my mouth to speak, he abruptly turned away. I was back in the class room, vaguely hearing the teacher's lecture. Sora faced forward like he was really listening to what the teacher had to say, like our moment was nothing to him. He hated me. I looked forward too, ignoring the inevitable feeling of rejection that had begun filling my heart.

"Anyway, since this is mid terms, I need to assign something that will average out your grades. So! I've decided on a group project. The details are in this rubric. You have a week exactly to complete the assignment. Now here are the partners I've decided on… Rikku, I'll get you out of the way now since you'll be starting here tomorrow anyway, and you'll be with Riku! He's a really nice guy that's sure to get you an 'A' on the assignment. Sora and Yuffie, Aerith and Cloud, Garnet and Kairi…" He continued to name the rest of the teams but I wasn't listening. I looked at Garnet and sighed in exasperation. I did not want to work with her! She was such a momma's girl and a stick in the mud! I looked at Sora to see how he liked (or disliked) the arrangement but I saw that he had begun to whisper stuff in Yuffie's ear. She seemed a little uneasy and I thought that that was a big change from the way she was flirting with him all those weeks ago. I also decided that he was thrilled about working with her. When the bell rang, I was more than happy to be out of the class, well at least away from Sora. Too bad I couldn't see the future, otherwise I wouldn't have woken up that morning, I wouldn't have decided to help Namine and I would have easily avoided the painful future ahead of me by doing so. Damn karma…


	9. Chapter 5 Pt II

_**Chapter 5: Revenge of the Backstabbers**_

_**Part II: Back Pain**_

When we got to the school, it was deserted save a few people that had early morning practices. I saw Olette running her daily mile with some others who were on track as well. She waved at me without getting a hitch in her pace and I waved back. I felt a little subconscious though… I _did_ have copies of the pictures that she and Fujin tried so hard to keep out of the hands of the public after all.

"Who's that?" Rikku asked innocently.

"My friend Olette. I'll introduce you to her later," I explained. We both watched as she faded with the rest of her team as they circled around to the other side of the school building.

"She's fast," Rikku stated.

"Hey! Kairi! We're over here," I heard Namine yell. I turned around and saw her, Larxene, and Tifa as they made their ways over to the huddle of cheerleaders. I pulled Rikku along with me as I went over to join them. Why was I walking into another one of Namine's stupid ideas? I was all for making Yuffie miserable but didn't that kind of stuff always find a way back to you? Karma. That's what it's called. I was no fan of negative karma. I didn't want to be punished for my actions later on… maybe I could be there with my sister without actually involving myself. When Yuffie saw us coming, she gathered her posse', Aerith and Yuna, and met us half way. The talking didn't start right away. It was pure silence as we stood gawking at each other angrily.

"Hi! My name is Rikku! I'll be starting school here tomorrow!" The ice had been cracked by Rikku's outburst and everyone looked at her with confusion, except Aerith who smiled sweetly.

"Hi Rikku. I'm Aerith. I'm a junior. What grade will you be in?"

"Well… guess. What grade do I look like I'll be in?"

"… Eighth?" Yuna guessed.

"Ha! But I'm not! I'm a junior too! Maybe we'll have the same classes together! Nice meeting you Aerith! What about you, what's your names?" I looked at Rikku quizzically. I would never have guessed she was a junior! There had to be some kind of catch. She was younger than me right? I felt that I didn't know her well enough to question her so I didn't pry. Yuna and Yuffie exchanged looks as though debating whether or not to follow Aerith's example and welcome the new comer or not.

"I'm Yuna," the brunette said finally.

"Yuffie. Isn't this so cliché? Namine's added yet another peon to her clique of skank bitches."

"Excuse me?" Rikku asked angrily. Yuffie crossed her arms coolly and said, "Well. Maybe not. You _are_ new after all. Word of advice, you don't want to be seen anywhere near Namine. She's bad news."

"Or so she says. Which reminds me. I heard you've been talking to Sora. Last I checked, I told you to stay away from him. Your mouth's your own enemy Yuffie and I tried to help you but I guess some people just won't be helped!" Namine snapped. I pulled Rikku to the side with me, shaking my head as a silent indication that told her didn't want to be involved. Yuffie flipped some hair back and ginned.

"Now, you're not being fair to Sora. I was just trying to help him too by letting him know what a whore you are," she explained, "My bad for being a good friend. By the way, seen Riku around lately?" I saw Namine's face contort itself into a disgusting display of her anger before she calmed down and pulled the photos from her pockets.

"That all depends. Are you still seeing Paine on the side?" Namine questioned. She smiled spitefully when she saw that she got the desired effect from Yuffie that she wanted when the girl's jaw dropped and her eyes bugged out at seeing the photo of her and Paine kissing.

"Where… where…?"

"Nice picture huh? But look at the rest of these!" Namine told Tifa and Larxene to pull out their hidden photos and all the color drained away from Yuffie's face when she saw them.

"But… how…?"

"If you don't want those to miraculously find their ways out into the open then you'll stay away from Sora! Hm. And while I'm at it, tell me who told you about me and Riku in the first place," Namine demanded. Yuffie sighed a little in an example of her anguish and her friends gave her sympathetic looks, but she only grinned.

"You think you got me by the throat or something huh Namine? I don't care who sees those pictures because I'm not ashamed of the dirt I've dug into. But you… you are ashamed of your dirty little secrets, which are more than you're actually letting on. Don't worry, I'm sure Sora will end up finding out what kind of girl you really are by the end of this year. Whether or not it'll me or anyone else telling him I can't say for sure. But he will find out," Yuffie told. I saw Namine actually flinch a little but then she regained her composure and shook her head.

"I've broken up with Riku. Nothing's going on anymore. And even if there was, it can't be any worse than this," she held up the picture, "Hm. I'm gonna take your threat seriously Yuffie, and I'm going to take the proper precautions to make sure you don't open up your mouth ever again," she pocketed the picture and walked away with her two followers tagging along. Rikku and I walked away too. When I looked back, I saw Yuffie had started crying and Aerith and Yuna proceeded to comfort her.

"We gotta find out who's leaking my business to the public. And then we can catch them at their worse as well," I heard Namine say. I hoped she wasn't including me in any of her scams. I didn't want to be apart of any of them. The photos in my pockets were starting to feel like they weighed a ton. If I was apart of anymore of her schemes… adding on the extra weight of such burdens… well… it'd be an awful lot of weight to put on.

We followed my sister and co. to the gymnasium where the Blitzball team was holding practice. The big water dome was up and I saw the boy's figures as they expertly treaded the water. Sora was in possession of the ball and everyone was coming after him but he couldn't be caught. He tossed the ball to Riku who kicked it forcefully into the opposing team's net. He and Sora exchanged fives and I felt myself smile subconsciously. They were the unstoppable duo on the team. Hopefully they'd take us all the way to districts this year and then maybe the tournaments even!

"Wow! Your Blitzball team must be good! Look at this. This is crazy!" I turned from the game to see that Rikku had stopped to look at the trophy display near the entrance. Namine and her friends rolled their eyes, as though the information wasn't something new.

"Yea. Right. But look at the last date on the most recent trophy. It says 2004. We haven't won anymore for four years," I explained, "We suck." Suddenly I heard water splash and turned away from Rikku to see the team jumping from the dome and falling onto the floor none to gracefully. Tifa and Larxene backed away as though the boys were carrying some fatal disease. It was just water. Last I checked it wasn't fatal… most the time.

"Wow!! _This_ is the Blitzball team!?" Rikku exclaimed excitedly. I nodded my head to clarify her rather good assumptions and saw her gawk at them with a slight blush on her cheeks. Sora shook the water from his hair to stop it from dripping into his eyes and some landed on me.

"Hey!"

"Hey Namine, Larxene, Tifa," He greeted and then he looked at me and I felt my heart bubble with excitement, "Kairi…"

"Hey babe," Namine said. She cupped the crook of his neck and pulled him down so that she caught his lips in a passionate kiss. I wasn't the only one that felt offended by their open display of affection. Larxene and Riku sorta trembled with anger. When the couple finally broke away for air, Sora asked, "Geez, what'd I do right? I get a surprise visit and a kiss without having to beg."

"You're so goofy!" Namine claimed. She hit him playfully on the shoulder and he caught her hand with his own to pull her into a tight embrace. I turned away, not wanting to see anymore… If only he knew what kind of person she really was… The hairs on my neck began to stand, and my sixth sense kicked in. I felt someone staring at me. I looked back up and saw that it was Demyx. I felt my cheeks heat up and I knew I was blushing. We looked at each other for a few minutes and I didn't know why we did. I was still angry about the kiss that happened Saturday. I broke our intense gaze to look at my feet.

"So, anyway, what's your name?" Sora asked, directing the comment towards Rikku. He ignored my sister's halfhearted protests about not wanting to catch his wetness as he looked at Rikku, who played dumb by looking around like he was talking to someone else, but then she said, shyly, "I…I…I'm Rikku… I'm new here… starting tomorrow." Ah. Someone had a weakness for cute guys. I never heard her stutter until now that she was in the presence of a team full of gorgeous boys.

"Nice name. I'm Sora, Namine's boyfriend. And this is the Blitzball Team."

"I'm Demyx."

"And I'm Wakka!"

"Hi I'm Tidus!"

"Sup, the name's Zell."

"Axel."

"Nice to meet you all!" Rikku exclaimed merrily before she turned to look at Riku no doubt noticing that he didn't introduced himself. He didn't seem interested in doing so either as he proceeded to towel dry his long platinum hair.

"So are you interested in sports Rikku? Cuz if you are then let me know. I've been trying to get a girl to play on the team for the longest! We can get double the funding with a girl on the team," Sora said.

"Neat. I'll definitely think about it," Rikku said politely, returning her attention to the conversation at hand. Suddenly she added, "Oh! But you know, maybe more girls would sign up if you guys won more often!" I bit my bottom lip in an attempt to subdue the growing urge to crack up at her comment. Larxene and Tifa gave Rikku shocked looks as did Namine and the whole team seemed embarrassed.

"Wha…what?" Sora asked.

"I'm just sayin'. Well, because Kairi brought it to my attention that you haven't gone to districts for the last four years. I just think more people would take you seriously if you applied yourselves more." Everyone's attention was now focused on me. I giggled nervously and kinda hid behind Rikku. I heard a snicker and looked at the other Riku. He was laughing at the situation. I didn't find it funny. Not at all. Or was he laughing at Rikku? I saw them exchange looks, each with a shy smile playing on their lips.

"Dang we're not all that bad Kairi," Demyx stated angrily.

"Yea. And that's all gonna change this year so chill out Kairi," Sora snapped. I shrugged and rolled my eyes.

"I'll believe it when I see it."

"Come on! We gotta hit the showers before school starts!" Wakka cried. The team rushed off in the direction of the locker rooms, but Demyx lingered. Sora guided Rikku and Namine away, all the while talking Rikku's ear off about the benefits of being on the team as a means to coax her to join. Larxene and Tifa followed after them and then it was just me and Demyx together. He stepped up to me and I fought the urge to step back.

"Kairi," he said.

"Demyx," I snapped. He flinched a little and winced at my tone of voice.

"Still pissed about that kiss huh?"

"Not so much as other things." I said looking down "there" to make my point.

"Sorry… Really I am. I just can't control myself… I like you Kairi… A lot," he said. My stomach got butterflies and I felt nervous. That's not at all what I was expecting. He was so blunt and so earnest. I blushed again, embarrassed that he confessed his feelings for me out of the blue like that. And as pathetic as it sounded, I didn't know what to think or feel. It _was_ the first time anyone had told me that they liked me so upfront. He stood watching my reaction and he sighed a little.

"Anyway. Here's a make-up present…" I thought he was going to kiss me again but he pulled out a present and placed it in my hand. As I studied the cute pink box it was wrapped in, he leaned in and whispered in my ear, "I hope you like it… And I'm really sorry." He pulled away and smiled before running away to the locker rooms. I didn't know what to think, I didn't know if I wanted the present or not. I didn't know what he meant by giving me something for nothing. I put the present in my backpack and followed his path out of the gym.

"Whoa. You didn't tell me you had a boyfriend… and that he was on the Blitzball team!" Rikku exclaimed. I jumped back up against the wall in my surprise and held my heart.

"You were supposed to be gone!"

"I didn't feel like being a third wheel. Seems like I've been one all morning long!" I blushed knowing that the implication was about my sister and her friends.

"Uh… sorry about that…"

"I'll forgive you… only if you pretend to be my tourist guide and show me around more effectively." I whined and said, "Yes your majesty…" Rikku grinned with her content and I began down the hallway to show her around. I couldn't help but wonder where the Queen Bitches ran off to though… I knew wherever they went trouble was close at their heels.

I never thought our school was really that big, but either it was and I'd just gotten used to it, or Rikku's old school was small because she kept making comments about how huge everything was. Her old school must not have had up-to-date material either because everything she saw intrigued her. The science lab especially. Too bad when I got in there Mr. Ansem was in there talking with some guy I never saw before. He was a young, tan skinned, platinum blonde haired, dark eyed man. I guessed he was a freshman in college. Or he could very well have been one of those student teacher type fellows. I didn't care. I wanted to get out before Mr. Ansem saw me.

"Excuse me Miss Trepe. What are you doing here? Have you come for a much needed and well overdue tutoring session?" he asked. He had a cocky look on his face and I felt the heat once again rise to my cheeks.

"No… I'm just showing a new student around…," I added under my breath, "but it's none of your business." Rikku went over to the desk and shook hands with him.

"I'm Rikku sir. I'll be a junior."

"Really? How old are you?"

"Fifteen. But I was home schooled so I'm ahead of everyone else," she explained. So that was what it was. I didn't feel right asking about it because I thought she'd get offended. Mr. Ansem looked at me then looked at her and then looked back to me.

"Hm. Maybe you can help Miss Trepe here with her studies. She's barely passing with them all."

"Hey a 'D' _is_ a passing grade," I muttered. Rikku smiled brightly.

"Of course! Nice meeting you Mr. Ansem." Rikku dragged me out of the room with ease and I silently thanked her. When we were a good distance from the room she said, "You don't like Mr. Ansem huh?"

"Is it that obvious?" I questioned sarcastically, "No. I hate him."

"He doesn't seem to like you either. Why's that?"

"Because he knows I'm failing his class on purpose."

"What? Why?"

"Because… I know I can pass it. Why do I have to let the teachers know it? I hate how they stress the importance of college and getting scholarships with high GPA's. That's too much stress and I refuse to let them run me," I explained. Rikku smiled sweetly.

"It's your way of getting back at the big guy huh?"

"Right." We were silent as we turned down another hallway, lined with lockers. Rikku studied them and then asked, "Did you know that other guy in the room?"

"What? No. Never seen him before in my life," I said, "Out of curiosity, why'd you ask?"

"Because… he was looking at you funny. That's why I cut it short with Mr. Ansem. That guy gave me the willies!" What a strange development. I didn't notice him looking at me weird. Why was he looking at me? I did't get it. Rikku started laughing and I thought she was gonna say, "I'm only joking!" but she said, "I'm really frickin' hungry!"

"Huh? Oh. Well, the cafeteria's this way."

I took Rikku to the cafeteria where I saw Olette and Fujin. They were sitting at one of the tables in the far back so after Rikku got her breakfast, we maneuvered easily through the large throng of tables to get over to them.

"Hey Kai. What's up? Why were you here so early?" Olette asked.

"Uh… I was just… showing Rikku around. She's new."

"Hi! I start school here tomorrow!" Rikku said.

"Hi. I'm Olette and this zombie is Fujin. I call her Fuu. Don't mind her if she seems a little pissy. She's not exactly a morning person."

"Mwha!" Fujin grumbled, incoherently, with her face kissing the table. She really could be compared to a zombie. I pulled up a seat and so did Rikku. Olette watched me for a moment and I felt my face burn slightly. I lied okay, but I didn't want my sister to get found out… well… actually I didn't want to be found out about working _with_ my sister. I held my cargo pocket subconsciously. The pictures sat there unscathed.

"You okay Kairi?" Olette asked. I guess my guilt was visible. I numbly nodded.

"Yea…"

"Good. But listen, I uh… After I got off the phone with you yesterday, I talked to Roxas…," she said with a small voice. I strained my ears to hear her. She nodded her head towards Rikku, indicating to me that the decrease in volume was because she didn't want her to hear our conversation. I doubt the girl was paying attention to anything but the crappy school breakfast that she was stuffing in her mouth.

"Really? That's good huh?" I said, also in a whisper.

"In a way… I told him about Hayner…," she said, "And I think I got him into some trouble…"

"What are you talking' about?"

"Well… he got into a gang fight… I dunno. Some group Hayner was in, decided to give Roxas some trouble when he tried to confront him about it… I… I mean… I know Sora brought him back home yesterday but… I…" Her voice trailed off and she completely broke down right there. I awkwardly reached across the table to pat her on the back.

"It's okay Olette… So long as he isn't dead…," I offered. Olette looked at me with big, brown, watery eyes and I gave her a small smile.

"See? Everything's okay…"

"…I don't… feel so good…" Before anyone could say or do anything, Olette was up and sprinting to the bathroom. She was out of sight in a few seconds thereafter.

"That's a new record." I looked at Fujin who had miraculously come to life.

"What?" I asked.

"She's been going to the bathroom a lot lately…"

"To throw up!?"

"That's not good for her teeth," Rikku stated. We all looked in the direction of the bathroom.

"…Is Olette doing drugs?" I inquired.

"No! I only let her have some reefer once or twice. She's got no other suppliers besides me so I doubt that," Fujin said, "…I dunno. Maybe it's the after affects of the rape. She's probably not over it at all yet."

"Rape??" Rikku cried.

"The boy's been expelled," I said, as though that would appease the girl's worries or my own fears. Besides, he wasn't expelled on the account of the rape so much as beating the tar outta me (which he didn't). Now he was in a gang and getting into fights for real…After Olette got out of the rest room, the first bell rang and all the students flooded into the cafeteria, either for socializing or eating. We left and went to our lockers following the giant wave of the majority.

First hour, my mind wasn't on the class work. I was still worried about Olette… still confused about Demyx… still wondering about Namine's next actions against Yuffie who didn't sit too far from me now and who was also casting hateful eyes my direction… and I was slightly curious about the looks Rikku and Riku were exchanging between one another during the entire class. I also couldn't help but notice how Sora didn't pay any attention to me. He didn't even look my direction to throw a kind smile, or friendly wave. Had the kiss really created such a giant gulf between us that was so impossible to cross that Sora didn't even want to try to cross it? Was our friendship really that easy to throw away? I felt tears fill my eyes to the brim. Did he know he was hurting me? Was he doing it on purpose? I looked at him longingly, begging him to turn my way but had no such luck.

I knew I said I let him go… but it wasn't as easy doing as it was saying. I still loved him. I couldn't stop loving him. I wished I hadn't told him to forget about the kiss. I wished I hadn't dissed him yesterday. And I wish it was possible to take it all back and let him know how I really felt. That was when he looked at me with those big blue eyes. We stared at one another and I felt so separated from everything else that it seemed like we were the only ones in the room. The teacher's voice even became silent.

A look of concern flickered across his face and I felt a tear drop down my cheek.

"Sora… I…," my voice was so small and was shaking so bad that I doubt he heard me. He seemed interested, imploring me to continue my statement with his eyes. I closed my mouth, unsure if I really wanted to continue, and when I opened my mouth to speak, he abruptly turned away. I was back in the class room, vaguely hearing the teacher's lecture. Sora faced forward like he was really listening to what the teacher had to say, like our moment was nothing to him. He hated me. I looked forward too, ignoring the inevitable feeling of rejection that had begun filling my heart.

"Anyway, since this is mid terms, I need to assign something that will average out your grades. So! I've decided on a group project. The details are in this rubric. You have a week exactly to complete the assignment. Now here are the partners I've decided on… Rikku, I'll get you out of the way now since you'll be starting here tomorrow anyway, and you'll be with Riku! He's a really nice guy that's sure to get you an 'A' on the assignment. Sora and Yuffie, Aerith and Cloud, Garnet and Kairi…" He continued to name the rest of the teams but I wasn't listening. I looked at Garnet and sighed in exasperation. I did not want to work with her! She was such a momma's girl and a stick in the mud! I looked at Sora to see how he liked (or disliked) the arrangement but I saw that he had begun to whisper stuff in Yuffie's ear. She seemed a little uneasy and I thought that that was a big change from the way she was flirting with him all those weeks ago. I also decided that he was thrilled about working with her. When the bell rang, I was more than happy to be out of the class, well at least away from Sora. Too bad I couldn't see the future, otherwise I wouldn't have woken up that morning, I wouldn't have decided to help Namine and I would have easily avoided the painful future ahead of me by doing so. Damn karma…


	10. Chapter 5 Pt III

_**Chapter 5: Revenge of the Backstabbers**_

_**Part III: No Such Thing as Loyalty**_

I bolted out of Intro to Public Speaking. I felt like crap. I hadn't even noticed Rikku walking beside me and she didn't seem to notice my foul mood.

"This school isn't a joke. They really work you to the bone," she stated. Yea. It also destroyed your soul too.

"Whatever," I muttered.

"Kairi? You okay?"

"Fine."

"Okay… So. Can you show me to my next class?"

"I gave you a tour this morning."

"It's a big school." I turned down the hallway and someone bumped into me so hard I dropped my books.

"Jackass!"

"Kairi! Let me help…" After we got my things picked up, we continued in the direction to my locker where Fujin and Olette were waiting. Selphie was there too.

"Uh… Hey guys… Hey Selphie." Selphie seemed a little embarrassed and said, "Hey."

"Guess what! You will not believe it!"

"We got a new language arts teacher." Fujin finished for Olette.

"Really? Who is it?" I inquired, fumbling with my lock.

"Mr. Xemnas. He's hot," Olette said.

"Is he young?" Rikku questioned.

"Yea why?"

"He was making oogly eyes at Kairi earlier."

"Shut-up Rikku!" I didn't feel like talking about "hot" guys. I didn't feel like being around my friends. I didn't feel like being at school and I didn't feel good at all… And just when I thought the day couldn't get any worse… it happened. It was almost simultaneous and surreal the way it happened too. When I finally got my locker opened, they fell. They just rained down. Pictures. _The_ pictures. They'd been stuffed in my locker and others' lockers as well and now they came flooding out as people opened their lockers. Photos. Sometimes there was more than one copy of the same picture in a locker. The pictures… My mind tried to grasp the fact that it was _the_ pictures and that they were _out_ in the _open_. I saw Olette and Fujin look pissed and then they looked at me in confusion. I felt sweat trickle down my face. The whole student body was in an uproar. There was loud talking and gasps of surprise. I felt dizzy. When had Namine and her friends done it? I tried to escape, but the mass of students was too much and then I saw her. She stood a little ways away with Sora and Aerith as they just came from class. They looked at me and then looked at her. At that moment I didn't care that Sora decided to look at me then. I was entranced with _her_ eyes. They held so much grief… so much pain. She was looking at me with those painful eyes and my heart clenched.

At seeing Yuffie, everyone started laughing. Tears streamed down her face and she ran away. I wanted to go after her. I wanted to comfort her. No one deserves her kind of torment. No one. The only thing that stopped me from telling her so was a hand on my shoulder. It was a strong, manly hand and it pulled me none too gently. I turned around and saw that the hand belonged to Mr. Cid.

"I want to see you in my office." My heart sank down deep into the bowels of my poor existence. I had to face my inevitable fate.

I didn't understand why I didn't see my sister or her friends there. After all, it wasn't _me_ that put the pictures in the lockers. I didn't do _anything_ really. My leg jumped uncontrollably under the table and I sat with my hands on my lap, palms sweating. Mr. Cid didn't seem to sense my anxiety, he just kept a nonchalant expression as he leaned on his desk with his chin resting thoughtfully on his hands.

"Kairi," he started, "I understand that you know something about these pictures." He held up a photo of Yuffie and Paine. I nodded my head slowly.

"Are they yours?"

"N…no…"

"Did you put them in the other kids' lockers?"

"No…"

"Okay. Empty your pockets." My heart pounded against my chest and I felt my under arms begin to perspire. I reached into my cargo pocket, almost automatically as I seemed to be drawn by the invisible force of Mr. Cid's icy blue eyes, and pulled out the copies I had. Mr. Cid looked at them, then at me, and then back at the pictures.

"You claim that these aren't yours, that you hadn't put them in the lockers, yet you have the copies of the pictures sitting in your pocket… Is there something you're not telling me Miss Trepe?"

"It's… I… It wasn't me! It was my sister!"

"Namine? But she came in and told me that it was you. She said you even had the pictures in your pockets. The original copies. And was she not right about that?" He waved the pictures in my face pointedly. I couldn't believe my ears. I was made to take the fall for _their_ actions. Me! I was the scape goat, the fall guy! Namine, my own flesh and blood, framed me for a crime I didn't commit! I sat looking at the principal, feeling numb. I couldn't feel anything now. I was broken.

"Kairi?"

"…I didn't do it! I don't care who believes me or what they have against me, but I didn't do it. It was Namine, Larxene, and Tifa. They don't like Yuffie that's why…"

"But you don't like her either apparently. Did you not punch her in the face a couple of weeks ago?" Word got around too fast at this school. I didn't think any teachers were around to see that. Maybe Namine told him…

"Yea… but that was only once. I don't care about Yuffie. I was holding the pictures for Namine because she didn't want to loose the originals." Mr. Cid just sat looking at me for a moment before sighing and sitting back in his chair.

"Kairi. Do you know what kind of damage this will do to that poor girl? Imagine yourself on stage with everyone looking at you and suddenly you do something embarrassing. It's humiliating right?" I nodded, "Yea."

"So can you imagine what poor Yuffie will have to go through? Now I'll have to send her home. She'll miss out on education! Priceless education. These pictures were hidden for a reason. They weren't made to be seen. So, I'm going to have to punish someone for this. I'm not playing the he did or she did whatever game because it'll do none of us any good. So I caught you Kairi. You're going to be punished. And don't think of it as unfair because didn't you know about it before it happened?"

"…Y…yes but-''

"And you let it happen. That's almost as bad as doing it yourself. Bad triumphs when good people don't act Miss Trepe. Remember that." I sat with his hands brought together once more under his chin and he seemed to let it soak in for me.

"So, what's gonna happen to them then?" How are you gonna punish the real evil here?

"I'll deal with the rest of them Kairi. But you should be more concerned about yourself. I'm going to give you ISS and I'm calling your parents. We won't tolerate this kind of behavior Kairi. And I'm taking action to stop it."

I sat in the empty ISS room feeling suddenly claustrophobic. It was a small, white, box of a room. The teacher, Miss Xu, took up half the space with her giant desk. I laid my head on my little, wooden, square desk feeling like crap. I couldn't stop myself from thinking of how it was supposed to be Namine sitting where I was. Mr. Cid wouldn't even listen to my explanations. He automatically suspected I was the real offender probably because Namine acted like the perfect little angel around adults, and had good grades. He was angry and needed to blame someone. And that someone just had to be me? This world was such a crooked place. I mean, what if all he did to Namine and her friends was give them a lecture? And they were the ones that pulled the BS.

I needed something to cheer me up and distract me. I needed to unload myself of these burdens. Reaching into my backpack, I felt around for a writing utensil and a sheet of paper for the purpose of writing about my troubles. Instead of finding either of the material, I found the present that Demyx had given me earlier. I sorta stared at it in contemplation, not knowing what to do with it. The logical part of my brain told me to open it, while the other part tried to think of a reason not to. Like, accepting the gift was similar to accepting his feelings. I knew whatever it was would serve as a remedy to my anguish by making me happy so I opened it. Inside was a letter and underneath the letter was a necklace with a star on it. I looked at it and smiled then I read the letter.

_This star is for you Kairi and all you represent. Like you, it's bright, shining in it's own light. Like you, it's bold, with its own unmatchable beauty. Like you, it stands out with its dazzling flare. And like it, you're destined to go far._

_From your admirer,_

_Demyx_

It was so corny and yet, so simply it told me everything Demyx saw in me or thought about me. And more importantly, it made me feel a helluva lot better. I pulled the necklace out and used my thumb to rub the star pendant thoughtfully. I smiled and decided to put it on. For the rest of ISS, I was content as thoughts of Demyx swirled through my mind.

When school was finally over, I moped all the way out to the parking lot, not daring to make any eye contact with anyone else. If I saw Namine, I was gonna kick her ass. Period. I made up my mind. I didn't feel sorry for her anymore. She knew what she was doing. She wasn't stupid. She was just a cold hearted… The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. Everyone was going to think that I was the asshole and not Namine… I should never have kept her secret. Now I was suffering, entangled in her webs of deceptions which knew no loyalty to anyone. Not even her sister. I wish I was still invisible. I wish I was never apart of her bull crap. And I wouldn't be. Not anymore.

"Look. Yuffie. I'm sorry the pictures got out. But it was necessary if we wanted everyone to think you know… that… well… you know," I heard Larxene talking in her cell phone. When she said, "Yuffie", she had my undivided attention. How in the world did she find a need to converse with her arch nemesis? I hid a little behind someone's Nitro, which looked really nice and frickin' new. Turning my attention from the car, I listened.

"Yea. Uh huh. So anyway, now you have a reason to tell Sora about her and Riku… No. They aren't messing around anymore… but… No. Listen bitch! She told me that she loves him. The only reason their break-up is lasting as long as it is, is because they're staying away from each other. If we bring them together some kind of way…" I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Did Larxene hate my sister that much to go behind her back and scheme to destroy her relationship with her boyfriend?

"…So you get it? Okay. Well think of something then. Yea. Make sure we get them caught without us actually doing anything. Yea… This is gonna be great! She totally deserves it, she's such an ass. Sora's way too good for her… what? Kairi and Demyx? Don't worry, we'll figure something out to do with those two…" I felt like slapping the silly smirk right off her ugly face. There was nothing going on between me and Demyx. It was a one sided attraction. She didn't need to include me in any of her scams. When I was about to tell her so, someone came up from behind me and asked quizzically, "Kairi?" I turned around and blushed when I saw that it was Demyx. He had his keys out like he was meaning to get into the car I was hiding behind. I straightened up, embarrassedly.

"Hey," he said easily. I nodded a little and said in a small voice, "Hi… I… It… It isn't what it looks like I just…"

"S'okay. I don't need an explanation." I looked at him, silently admiring his smirk and blue eyes. I looked back at where Larxene had been and saw that she had vanished. Damn!

"Well, I gotta go…," I started. I tried to walk around him but he grabbed my shoulder and spun me around. His gaze was intense and he seemed to be studying me rather hard.

"Oh! That's what it is… You're wearing the necklace I got you! It looks good on you."

"Th…thanks… I mean, for giving it to me and telling me I looked nice too… I uh… it… made me feel a lot better. I mean, I was feeling really bad…"

"Oh yea, you got ISS right? For those pictures. Is that why you, Fujin, and Olette were asking about them? That was kinda mean. I never seen Yuffie cry that much." I looked at my feet as I felt shame fill me to the very edges of my soul.

"I would never hurt anyone like that… Not on purpose," I admitted, "I don't care what they do to me… I wishI had stopped it before it happened…"

"So you didn't do it? Then, who did? Why'd Cid punish you?"

"It was Namine, Larxene, and Tifa. They don't like Yuffie and decided to punish her for talking to Sora last week… I told Mr. Cid but he didn't seem to believe me and Namine told him that it was me and that I had the original copies to prove it. I was only holding them for her. I was… framed." Demyx seemed to let my words soak in. He had a thoughtful look on his face and leaned up against his car with a finger to his chin. I felt my restored soul shatter once again as I relay the details. I still couldn't believe Namine had done that. Not after all I'd done for her.

"Man… that sucks ass Kairi. Really, that's not fair at all. Namine's a bitch," Demyx finally said, breaking the silence. I sighed a little and nodded.

"Yea…" I agreed.

"Are you okay? Do you want to go somewhere? I know you're not ready to go home yet. Not with that backstabbing whore there." I looked at him, to see if he was pulling my leg. He'd really take me somewhere? He looked so serious that I knew he wasn't lying. My heart fluttered and I said softly, "Would you take me somewhere? Please?" Tears fell down my cheeks and Demyx pulled me into himself. I cried into his shoulder and squeezed the sleeve of his jacket.

"Come on Kairi. Get in," he ordered gently. He pushed me away and used his thumb to wipe the tears from my cheeks. I smiled.

"Thanks. Demyx…" He blushed and opened the passenger side door for me. I got in and laid my head against the window. I heard him get in on the other side. He put the key in the ignition and pulled out from the school's parking lot. I sighed as a wave of relief washed over me.

He\drove me all over the island and we didn't do anything but talk. He listened as I told him everything. I told him about Riku and Namine, my feelings for Sora, how Olette got rapped and I got the perpetrator expelled. I even told him about how I was scared to face my friends tomorrow. I mean, how would they feel after finding out that I had betrayed them? After talking to him about it, I felt a lot better and I was so thankful that he listened without judging me. He did give his own opinion about things though as he offered friendly advice. When the sun finally went down, I decided that it was time for me to face the music. Demyx drove me home and we were silent the whole way.

When we pulled up in front of my house, I was reluctant to go inside. I sighed gently and looked at Demyx, "Thanks a lot. For everything. You're a great guy…" Demyx nodded and unlocked my door, "You're welcome Kairi…" I gave him one last smile and as I attempted to leave, I felt his hand on my shoulder. I looked at him.

"Demyx?"

"Kairi… I…" I sat back down inside the car and cupped his cheek in my hand, beckoning his wondering eyes to focus on me. He stared at me and leaned closer a little bit.

"I know that you like Sora and everything but… I don't think he's any good for you. He hasn't done anything but hurt you and stayed with Namine's evil ass. So… I know you might say no, but I have to ask… Kairi, would you please just give me a chance? I know that you see me as a friend and that's okay but I… I care about you a lot and I promise not to hurt you. Not intentionally anyway. And maybe, if you're with me, you won't have to think about Sora so much. Maybe you'll be a little less stressed out. I'm not asking to replace him, I just want to give you something to fall back on…" He was so sincere, it was sweet and his words pulled at my weary heart so much that I found myself saying, "Okay…" Demyx's eyes lit up and a smile filled his face.

"Ruh- really?? Oh thanks Kairi!" I laughed a little and closed the space between us by gently kissing him. He moaned a little and pulled me closer. I felt awkward, but I was so thankful to him that I felt obligated to give him what he wanted. We broke away from one another and smiled shyly.

"So, does that mean you'll pick me up tomorrow?"

"Sure thing. Bye Kairi." I waved and exited the car. Solemnly, I walked to my front door and opened it. I stepped inside after taking a deep breath and I heard Demyx's car drive away down the street. I felt so alone. I hurried upstairs to my room in order to avoid Namine and anyone else. I didn't notice my parents' cars in the driveway…

I was welcomed with a surprise. My mom and dad sat on my bed. They'd been talking in low tones and when they finally saw me their voices ceased. Their expressions were a little concerned and I felt terrible.

"Mom… Dad…," I said slowly.

"Kairi, we need to talk," my father said authoritatively. I hadn't been expecting anything less. Taking a seat at my vanity, I waited nervously to hear what they had to say. My mother studied me, tears in her eyes. She was the first to speak.

"We heard about everything from your principal honey… We even heard Namine's side of the story. So we know what's happened…" I looked at my hands.

"I'm sorry… I shouldn't have been apart of it… I knew better… but… I… I just…," I stuttered. There really was no logical explanation for taking part in Namine's dumb idea. I was just being foolish.

"Honey, we also know about the boy that beat you up. We aren't mad at you Kairi. We don't even care why you did that to that poor girl. We just want to know why you didn't tell us anything. I mean… I know we're not around that much, and maybe you feel like you're old enough to be in control of your own actions but… You're just sixteen Kairi. You're a minor. This doesn't make any sense what you've been going through! Even as adults we don't go through this much trouble!" My father said. He looked like he was mentally beating himself up. It was as though everything that had been happening to me lately, he'd taken upon himself like it was his fault. I cried a little. My parents didn't need to take the blame.

"Please… dad… you didn't do… anything…"

"Damn right I didn't do anything and I think that's the problem," he said lowly. He got up and pulled me into his arms. I hugged him back, desperate for some sort of comfort. My mother joined us and stroked my hair.

"Kairi, we're so sorry that we haven't been here for you to protect you… To help you… That's all gonna change now. You're father and I have changed our working schedules so that at least one of us is home with you. I'll be home in the morning and your father will be home in the evening. We'll both be here on the weekends. Oh Kairi… when had things gotten so bad? Now I kind of understand why your grades are so poor….," my mother explained. I felt like a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders and I smiled.

"Thank you… for trying to understand…," I said. My father kissed my forehead and looked me in the eyes.

"Don't ever feel the need to take on the world by yourself Kairi. Not when you have people who love you and would help you with anything that may be hurting you. Tell us when something's bothering you okay?" I nodded. He rubbed my cheek lovingly and then he stood up and looked at the clock on my wall.

"Look at the time… Get some sleep Kairi. And don't worry, your mother has talked to the principal so you don't have ISS. Just go to class, and do your best so you can hurry up and be outta that hellhole…" I laughed and he ruffled my hair father-like before exiting the room with my mom close at his heels.

I changed into my pajamas and climbed into my bed. Sleep came quickly as I was too emotionally drained to stay awake any longer.


	11. Chapter 6 Pt I

_**Chapter 6: Pesky Behavior**_

_**Part I: aPpArEnTly**_

The next day, I managed to get up by myself and it was really early. After I took a shower and got dressed, I went downstairs and saw my mom sitting at the table, talking with Rikku. She looked up and smiled brightly.

"Good morning Kairi," my mom greeted.

"Hey Kairi," Rikku said.

"Hey…" I had nearly forgotten that my mom was going to be home in the mornings now. She looked at me meaningfully, but I didn't know what to make of her strange look, so I smiled awkwardly. It was quiet and Rikku watched us expectantly.

"…Do you need a ride to school this morning Kairi?" My mom asked. I shook my head.

"No. Demyx is picking me up," I answered.

"Demyx?"

"You don't know him."

"Well. With a name like that I think I ought to meet him before he takes my daughter anywhere." I could only roll my eyes. His name wasn't as weird as Quistis (my mom's name) that's for sure.

"Whatever." I sat down, as far from the alien as possible, finding that her prying eyes made me feel unusually uncomfortable. I tried to ignore her curious gaze as I poured myself a bowl of cereal, but it was hard. Why was she looking at me that way anyway?

"Uh… could you stop staring at me mom? I feel uncomfortable…," I said.

"I don't know why. I'm only your mother Kairi."

"I know that…" Rikku sensed the tenseness in the room and piped in, "Mrs. Trepe, would it be alright if I went to school with her? That way, you know she'll be okay and you don't have to worry about Demyx trying anything. Not that he would… He's a really nice guy Mrs. Trepe. You'd like him a lot…"

"Hm. I guess so Rikku." Rikku smiled and winked at me but I didn't feel much like celebrating. Why was riding with Demyx okay when Rikku asked to do it?

After about thirty minutes passed, a car honked outside and I couldn't be more thankful for Demyx's timing than just then.

"Bye mom! See ya later," I called, and added under my breath, "I guess." Rikku and I ran out the front door to Demyx's awaiting Dodge Nitro. He smiled at me and Rikku and said, "Good morning."

"Hey."

"Hi!" Rikku jumped in the back seat and I sat in the front. I smiled at him shyly before leaning over to kiss him. To my surprise, he pulled away and I looked at him confusedly. He didn't seem to be paying any attention to me, however, he was looking past me. Following his gaze, my mouth dropped in horror when I saw my mom standing right outside the door. She knocked on the window and Demyx lowered it with the controls on his door.

"Hi. I'm Mrs. Trepe, Kairi's mother. I understand that you're Demyx correct?"

"Uh… yea…"

"It's nice to meet you. I was wondering, will you be making a habit of this?"

"Uh… I guess…"

"How long have you had your license?"

"Uh... a year…"

"So you're an experienced driver. No wrecks?"

"No…"

"And don't let there be any. Understand? My husband is a powerful man. If anything happens to my daughter, there'd be no one around to hold him accountable for any misfortune that may fall upon you… or your nice ride."

"Y…yes… ma'ma!"

"We're running late mom. Bye." I turned to Demyx and mouthed the word, "go!"

"Of course. Good bye Kairi. Rikku. … Demyx. Have a good day." No sooner had the words left her mouth did Demyx step on the accelerator and leave my mother as a small speck on my driveway. There was a tense silence, with Demyx focusing intently on the road, and then Rikku burst out in hysterics in the back seat.

----

"Get outta here! Are you serious? Wow… and I thought my mom was annoying…," Fujin claimed. We made it to school in one piece and I was happy that my friends weren't holding me responsible for Namine's actions. I was glad that they trusted me, but then again that was what good friends do. Olette was eating a hardy breakfast, three sausages, two eggs, a pancake, and milk, causing me to look at her disdainfully.

"Ew. How can you eat so much in the morning?"

"Breakfast _is_ the most important meal of the day! But anyway, I can't believe you go with Demyx! I knew it was going to happen! Are you over Sora then?" Olette said. Not by a long shot.

"…I found out that Demyx is really nice," I answered, "…yea."

"Right…," Fujin said, "… Ew! God Olette! Chew!"

"Huh? Would you guys get off my back?? If you want to go around lookin' like anorexic Barbie dolls then do it, but don't persecute me because I know how to down a meal!"

"Yea… and that's without chewing," Fujin replied. We started laughing, but Olette didn't seem to be in a joking mood. She huffed angrily, grabbed her tray, and stomped away to another table at the other end of the room. Fujin and I looked at each other.

"What a crybaby," she said.

"What's her problem?"

"I dunno man. But these mood swings are really starting to irk me!" Couldn't agree more. Maybe Olette was on that time of the month? That's the only way I could explain it. What else could it be? Sighing, I laid my head on the table, in a visible display of my exasperation and Fujin patted my shoulder. Apparently, she felt my pain.

"Hey Kairi!" I turned around to see Selphie walking towards me with a big smile. I sat up when she took a seat beside me and said, "What's up Selphie?"

"Nothin'. Look, I've been wanting to talk with you for a while now, but you're a hard one to get a hold of! What have you been up to lately?"

"Been busy."

"Well… are you too busy to talk now? Or can I talk to you… in private?" I looked at Fujin and Rikku, who shrugged indifferently and began to talk amongst each other. I looked back at Selphie and nodded slowly.

"Great! Okay, come with me real quick…," she said. We got up and I followed her into the bathroom. That damn bathroom hadn't been one of my favorite places this whole year so far. It had become a problematic scene in my life so much so that I didn't care to use the bathroom much at school anymore. And with such an infamous history, I should have known better than to have come there with my best friend…

Selphie locked the door. Not a good sign. Then she turned to me, and her expression was a little melancholic. What a paradox. Melancholy did not mesh well at all with my friend's bubbly personality… I took notice of this and then Selphie pulled herself up on the large sink, sitting with her back against the mirror and head cast downward. I prayed to God she wasn't about to reveal some type of secret to me… But what else could I have possibly been expecting? So I prayed instead that it wasn't too bad a secret. I leaned up against the wall adjacent to her and waited. My hands shook and my stomach turned.

"… What's been up with you lately Kairi? We've been so busy that we haven't talked for a while… What have I missed?" She said. Oh. She was gonna beat around the bush eh? Well, I can't say that I wasn't grateful for the small distraction. Smiling I said, "You haven't missed anything… except I go with Demyx, and Namine screwed Yuffie over and framed me for it. But I'm good."

"Wow! I didn't know you and Demyx were an item! When did this happen?"

"Yesterday."

"Congrats."

"I guess…"

"I can't believe Namine. How are you guys even living together?"

"I don't know. I haven't seen her at all so far. I know my parents are thoroughly pissed at her though."

"Who's that girl you hang out with? The new one? I've never seen her before…"

"She's a daughter of one of my mother's patients. Apparently, her father isn't doing so hot but she doesn't have any other relatives so she's staying with us until further notice. Yup yup."

"When did you start hanging out with Olette and Fujin…?"

"Oh… After Hayner beat me up… A lot people started talking to me around then…"

"Hm..." We were quiet. I guess the small talk was over with now… Sighing, I asked, "What about you Selphie? What have you been so busy with that you haven't had time to talk with your best friend?" She hesitated.

"… I think I'm pregnant."

"… What the hell did you just say?" Selphie sighed and jumped off the sink. She began pacing the room, back and forth, back and forth, as though nervous. I was still trying to comprehend the words she'd just spoken. _Pregnant_??

"You know I've liked Tidus a long time right? Of course, you know everything about me… And yes lately I admit I've been hanging out with him more than you and that's wrong but please don't hate me. Okay, so… Me and him went out a couple of weeks back and we got a little drunk… Well, I know we did it because I woke up in his room and we were naked… I'm not sure if we used protection though…"

"… What?"

"Kairi!!!" Selphie looked at me pleadingly, "This is for real! Oh my God I'm so scared that I've been buggin' about it all week!"

"Well… I mean. Not using protection isn't a guarantee that you're… pregnant Selphie… uh… I mean. There's no way you could know from just that alone right?"

"… I'm late. It was three days before my period Kairi!"

"Oh… shit…," I whined, "Why'd you do it Selphie?? He isn't even really all that cute!"

"I know! And I told him I may be pregnant but he's blowing me off and talking with Yuna! _Yuna,_ Kairi! Oh I can't stand it! I'm so scared…" I was scared too! What the hell??

"Oh my God Selphie! You can't be a mother! You still live at home with your own mother!! You can't even cook!"

"I know…"

"How the hell are you gonna raise a child?? Huh? Sweet mother of… Don't you know how ugly that thing's gonna be as it is his child!?"

"Hey! It's mine too!"

"Shit! Selphie! Listen, we have to know if it's for real okay? You might not even be pregnant."

"I know… That's why I went out and bought this…" She pulled a box out of her backpack and I saw that it was a pregnancy test, "I couldn't do it alone…" Selphie was so scared that her voice was shrinking and trembling. I looked at her, then at the box, then back at her. What a mess.

"Okay. I'm here. It's gonna be alright Selphie. Just go pee on the damn thing so we can figure this out… Lord have mercy…" Selphie nodded dutifully and proceeded to tear the box apart. I watched her, a million thoughts running through my mind as she pulled the cardboard to pieces. How was she going to be a mother? A mother? I thought about my mom. She was so annoying, but she loved me so much and cared for me. She had to deal with a lot of BS from both me and Namine, and she did… always forgiving us even though it was our faults. She would be putting up with our crap even when we were grown... She was gonna be a mother for the rest of her life! Selphie was an only child and just lived with her mother. She didn't know anything about caring for someone else. She got mad at me when I touched her things… how in the world was she going to be a mother?

She took the device into the urinal and I waited to hear the tell-tell tinkle that would ultimately decide my best friend's fate. After five minutes, I didn't hear a thing.

"Selphie. Come on already!" I cried.

"I'm trying! I'm too nervous…"

"Need me to go…"

"NO!" I flinched out her outburst.

"Okay…" There was another long pause and neither of us spoke, nor was there any peeing being done.

"It's no use… Look. Talk to me about something to calm me down."

"Selphie! It's bad enough that I'm in here while you're trying to pee! I don't want to _talk_ to you!"

"Kairi!" I sighed and kicked the wall irately.

"… I kissed Sora."

"WHAT!!?"

"It happened a couple of Saturdays ago. Me and Namine got into a fight and she left me and Sora alone to go vent… Then I broke a vase and Sora helped me clean it up. I wasn't watching what I was doing and I ended up getting glass in my hand. He cleaned it and wrapped it for me, and we talked a little bit. I started crying and then he… kissed me…," I told. A smile subconsciously creased in my lips as I recalled his body against mine and his lips… But then it went away when I realized what we almost did could have led me to the same situation my friend was in now.

"… I didn't know you liked Sora Kairi! This is big! How long have you liked him?"

"…Forever… I guess I just realized it recently though… But it doesn't matter. I ruined it by letting Namine have him. Don't you know that Larxene's trying to steal him too? I can't believe the stuff my sister's caught up in…" I really couldn't. Even though she was a bitch, I had to pity her. She was my sister after all…

"I suppose so Kairi… You and Sora? That's so cute! What about her and Riku? Are they still seeing each other?"

"No," I answered, "At least I don't have to worry about that anymore…"

"I missed a lot…"

"Well, a lot happens in a month." The first bell rang and I cussed under my breath.

"Selphie!" And then I heard her peeing. After a few minutes, she came out with the stick and I looked at her expectantly.

"Well??"

"It takes five minutes."

"We're already late! Look, just leave it in here and we can come back and look at it after first hour. Okay? Don't worry. No one would touch it. I swear. Now wash your hands and lets go!" Selphie obeyed and after I made her wash her hands one more time, we left, running to our first hour classes.

When I got to my class, everyone was broken into pairs and I walked in looking confused.

"How nice of you to join us Kairi," the teacher said. I rolled my eyes.

"Whatever. What's going on?"

"Don't you remember? I assigned a project yesterday and I'm giving you all class time to work on it. Your partner has been waiting on you for a while now. Hurry up and be seated."

"Yes sir…," I said sarcastically. I went over to Garnet, who looked disappointed that I had decided to show up. I didn't care to be in her company much either. I sat as far from her as I could. Everyone seemed busy working. Riku and Rikku looked liked they were having fun working together and I smiled. Rikku was a little flirt. I'd confront her about it later. I turned to the other side of the class room and saw Sora sitting by himself. Where was Yuffie? He must have sensed my eyes on him because he looked up suddenly and caught my gaze. I blinked. His expression was totally different from yesterday. He seemed… angry? Why was he angry? Was he angry at me for getting Namine in trouble? Well, she only had herself to blame really… Was he angry at me because he honestly believed that I was behind the whole picture fiasco? How could he? Why was he angry? He turned away in a huff and my eye brows furrowed in confusion. Just when I thought the day couldn't get any worse, Mr. Cid walked in.

"Why… Cid! What are you doing here?"

"Don't mind me. I'm just observing," he answered, but his beady eyes fell on me as he said so. I looked away from him and focused on Garnet. I had to appear busy.

"Anyway… what are we doing?" I asked. The dark haired girl looked at me and snappishly replied, "You would know if you were not busy acting like a hooligan." I felt my anger rise.

"What do you mean?"

"I tried to get Mr. Vexen to switch me with someone else, but he said he would not. I do not like to be around bad students." Bad students? So you could still judge people as good or bad? No. I didn't think so. How elementary! Who was she to judge me anyway when she still acted like she suckled her momma's teat? Holding back my anger, I asked forcefully through clenched teeth, "…How… do… you… mean?"

"Well… you get bad grades Kairi. And I am not going to be the one doing all the work for this project and I say this because instead of being here yesterday during free period, you were in ISS for pulling a joke, which I found not to be very amusing at all. Poor Yuffie. But, what I am trying to say is, if you can get your act together then we will work together just fine. Otherwise, you are failing on your own." I could only stare at her in disbelief. She had me figured all wrong. And the funny thing was she really believed that stuff. That's not who I am.

"So, are you going to work?" Why didn't she speak with contractions?

"…Uh… yea."

"Good." Yea right. I was going to show her how wrong her judgment of me was. A person can only take so much of the idiotic, condemnatory views of other people. Because if you didn't do anything about it, the views would place you in a box that you would never be able to crawl out of, for fear of being seen as whom you really are. Apparently, I was seen as a lousy student, stupid, and lazy. That was not me at all.

"So… What is your project about?" I turned around slowly at the sound of Mr. Cid's voice. He hovered over me menacingly and looked on mischievously.

"Uh…," I stuttered. He seemed to be getting a kick out of his apparent intimidation over me. Jerk off.

"We are making a speech against abortion," Garnet answered. I looked at her, but she continued to smile sweetly at the principal. Mr. Cid scratched his chin thoughtfully.

"Wonderful. I'll be sure to come and listen to it."

"Great. Looking forward to having you hear it!" With that said, Mr. Cid nodded and went on to pester other hard working students. I continued to look at Garnet with disbelief. She just saved me! Everyone knew that after a write up, ISS, and very angry parents that talk your way out of all of it, that the principal watches your every move just to find an excuse to give you trouble… Had Garnet not answered, Mr. Cid would have written me up for misconduct in the classroom because I didn't know what I was doing. What a bastard. Of course, Garnet went on to work, acting as though nothing happened.

"Shall we?" Ew. Just when I thought she was cool, she had to open her mouth! What was with the archaic language? Deciding to be nice, I proceeded to go over the research she gathered and then I began to put a lot of work into drafting our argument, which hopefully impressed her enough to change her mind about me just enough for me to get a little respect around here.


	12. Chapter 6 Pt II

_**Chapter 6: Pesky Behavior**_

_**Part II: BlInD**_

After working my ass off all first hour, I was ecstatic to hear the bell ring, indicating that my turmoil was finally ended. I gathered my things and hurried out of the room.

"Kairi" I turned to see who had called my name and it was Demyx. I smiled and joined his side at the door.

"How sweet of you to wait for me…," I said. He grinned.

"Well… not so much for you so much as this…" He pulled me close and kissed me on the lips sternly. I kissed back. When we broke apart I said, "Wow. Now I see."

"What?"

"You only want me for my body!" I accused, jokingly. Demyx laughed and said, "Let me make it up to you…" He kissed me again.

"Oh… go get a room!" I saw Riku, Rikku, and Sora come out of the classroom, and all of them were watching us. Demyx pulled me close, until my head was resting on his shoulder, and said, "Shut-up!"

"You guys are disgusting," Riku commented playfully, "And don't let me find out about you mistreating Kairi or I'll be kicking your ass, friend or no." I laughed. Sure, I didn't like him for what he did to Sora, but it was over with now. I could forgive and forget. Besides, he was like a brother to me anyway. Demyx rolled his eyes and from the corner of my eye, I saw Sora glaring coldly at the both of us. His look was so intense and so chilling that I felt compelled to jump away from Demyx. He didn't notice and continued to talk with Riku. Sora was still watching me angrily.

"Hey!" I heard Selphie's voice and remembered the bathroom.

"Look, I gotta go. I'll catch up with you guys later…," I said.

"Sure thing babe," Demyx told. I proceeded to lean over and peck his cheek, but Sora's look made me stop. I smiled and followed Selphie back to the restroom.

It was a cruel joke spurred by the fates to either test or humiliate me. When we arrived inside the bathroom, we were welcomed by an unsavory sight. Instead of the one stick Selphie had left on the sink, there was a whole pile of sticks and we looked on mystified.

"Is this some kind of trick??" Selphie cried vehemently.

"I couldn't tell you…" That was the truth. What were they doing there? Why were they there? And who would need that many? Selphie started panicking and began to rake through the pile. My nose crinkled up and I pulled her arm away.

"Don't do that! You don't know whose pee has touched that!" I cried. Selphie didn't fight or argue. Instead she turned the sink on and washed her hands.

"…Whose ever it is… they're pregnant." My mouth dropped and I glanced at the mess of sticks. Sure enough, they each had the pink plus or the word "pregnant" on them. I looked at Selphie and shook my head in shock.

"…Who… who do you think it is?" I asked. She shrugged and proceeded to wash her hands surgeon style a second time.

"It could be anyone… I just hope it isn't me."

I was so preoccupied the rest of the day that in third hour, I wasn't paying attention to Mr. Xemnas, the new teacher, as he proceeded to teach us about verb tenses. So when he called me to the board, I had no idea what I was doing. The class laughed as I tried in vain to recall what I had learned about verb tenses in previous years. Why did I only remember things when I needed them and then lock them away in my mind never to be found again? After class, Mr. Xemnas kept me.

"Miss Trepe. Do you intentionally try to be a nuisance in your classes?" I bit my tongue so that I wouldn't accidentally say something out of line. He paused to study me. His eyes seemed to bore into my soul.

"You aren't stupid… I know that. How? Because I know your parents. They aren't stupid so I know their children would favor their intelligence as well… can I ask what is causing you to do so poorly?" Everything.

"You can ask but I can't give you a justifiable explanation," I answered. He smirked.

"Try me." What did that mean?

"Look… Mr. Xemnas… I've got a lot on my mind. That's all," I told. He seemed to take it and nodded his head in understanding.

"Anyway… Can I go to class now?"

"By all means. And Miss Trepe, if not for anyone else, do your best for yourself. I mean… you owe yourself as much."

"Sure. I'll remember that. Maybe I'll put it on a bumper sticker someday." I walked out of the room before I got to hear his response. Who was he to butt into _my_ affairs? I mean, what gave him the right? … How well did he know my parents? I was happy when fourth hour was over because that meant lunch time and lunch time was always fun.

I took the usual seat at the table with my friends and noticed that Selphie and Roxas had joined the group. When I saw Roxas, I flinched involuntarily. He had a black ring around his eye and a busted lip. I suppose I down played it a bit. It may not have seemed so bad, but trust and believe he looked like complete shit. Olette didn't mind. In fact, she was so buried in her chief's salad and tuna sandwiches that I doubted that she noticed him or any one at all.

"Hey Kai," Fujin greeted. She was hunched over the table, mp3 player blasting fast, hardcore beats into her ear drums as she proceeded to sketch a picture in her notebook. She had only noticed me because I had cast a shadow over her work. It was a doodle of Donald Duck. I liked it. I didn't know Fujin was a Disney fan.

"Hey Kairi! So, I've got a question. Do you think your mom would mind too much if Riku came home with us today? I decided to have him over to get our project finished," Rikku asked. She didn't look at me, but focused on the table with a blush on her cheek. I smirked.

"I doubt she'll have a problem if it's just a study date… unless… it's something else entirely…" I raised my eyebrows suggestively and Rikku's blush deepened.

"Aw! Don't I wish! He is soo hot!" Wow. She was so blunt with everything.

"Yea. All his fans think so too," Roxas said. He tried to take a tomato from Olette's salad, and she made some weird hissing noise.

"What the hell?" He exclaimed, but she continued to eat as though nothing happened.

"I know someone else who gets hot in the panties whenever Riku's around…," Selphie said. She winked at me and started laughing. Rikku looked back and forth between us and asked, "Kairi! You like Riku??"

"What? Hell no! He's like a brother to me! Selphie's talking about Namine," I explained.

"But… I thought she went out with Sora…"

"She does," Roxas said, "The whore."

"Hey! Don't talk about my sister that way!"

"Well… tell her not to treat my cousin that way."

"Anyway, they had a thing going on, but it is way past over with so he's available," I said. I cast one final angry look at Roxas before offering Rikku a reassuring smile. It was silent but not awkward. I was actually happy around these people… well… save Roxas. And it was a genuine happiness. I barely knew them except Selphie, but it felt like I had known them forever.

"Babe. Can you take my tray up?" Olette said. Roxas looked at the empty tray then at Olette and back at the tray.

"What in the hell Olette?" He asked. She shrugged and motioned for him to take the tray. Sighing, Roxas got up and took the tray with him. Fujin pulled an ear bud from her ear and asked, "Are you through being a human garbage disposal?"

"Hey! That's not called for," Rikku stated.

"Well. She made the noises and everything! Why do you think I brought my mp3 player to the table?" I saw Olette's face twist up like she was going to cry.

"Okay Fujin… Quit raggin' on her…," I said. Fujin noticed Olette's face too and obliged.

"So… Kai. Why isn't Demyx sitting here?" she asked and I shrugged.

"Why isn't Seifer?" I countered. Fujin shrugged.

"Good point."

"Does everyone here have a boyfriend except me?" Rikku butt in.

"I'm on the rocks with mine," Selphie admitted.

"Does it really matter?" Olette questioned.

"Anyway, changing the subject. Did you know someone left a whole pile of pregnancy tests in the girls bathroom? And guess what… they're all positive!" Selphie exclaimed.

"I know. What kind of sick bitch does that anyway," Fujin replied. We laughed but Olette was quiet.

"Maybe one wasn't enough and so the girl wanted a second statement…," Rikku suggested.

"I heard a rumor that the custodian had to clean up over a dozen of those things though," Fujin said.

"Well she should've used One Touch."

"Yea… Wait! That's no pregnancy test you moron!" We all laughed. Olette started crying. I looked at her. The only other time I ever heard her cry was when she disclosed the news about her rape. An ominous feeling circled around in the pit of my stomach and I looked at Fujin who looked back at me. No one said anything and the only noise was Olette's soft sobs.

"Olette… We need to talk," Fujin said. She pulled friend up roughly by the arm and led her to the bathroom. I watched and looked at Selphie and Rikku. They seemed to share the same thought as me. Roxas came back with Tidus and looked at the three of us in confusion.

"Where's Olette and Fujin?"

"Bathroom," I answered.

"Hey. Selphie… We need to talk," Tidus claimed. Selphie stiffened and held my hand under the table.

"What's up?" She asked. Tidus rubbed the back of his neck and told her, "Come with me. I need to tell you this in private." He pulled her from her seat and led her away by hand. We watched and I couldn't stop myself from laughing erratically.

"What's your issue?" Roxas asked.

"Everything's so messed up!"

"…I suppose that's one way to handle that simple fact of life."

I was thankful to be outta that drama ridden cafeteria. I took my time getting to my fifth hour class, after all, I wasn't in a rush to be in Mr. Ansem's presence. I went to my locker and saw Demyx waiting. He smiled and I felt like some of the turmoil had been broken up in my chest.

"Hey… Kairi? What's wrong?" He cupped my cheek and I leaned into his comforting touch.

"Everything's so messed up…"

"Wanna talk about it?"

"… No."

"Are you sure? You know you're just gonna tell me later so what difference does it make? You know you can talk to me…" I smiled.

"I'll wait until later…"

"Okay. Suit yourself. But remember. I'm here for you."

"I know…" He leaned forward and kissed me softly, his hand cradling the necklace he gave me as a means of pulling me closer and I smiled against his lips.

"You're a star Kairi…," he mumbled.

"Thank you…" He walked with me to class and I felt slightly better and Mr. Ansem didn't bother me as much as usual.

After school, I walked to Demyx's car but it wasn't there. I saw Sora and the gang all huddled around Sora's BMW and I looked on in perplexity.

"Uh… Where's Demyx? Do any of you know?"

"He left already. He wanted me to tell you that he's sorry and that he'll call you later," Sora said. I was almost surprised to hear his voice. It seemed so alien…

"So now what am I gonna do?"

"He asked me to take you and Rikku home." I looked at Rikku and she nodded.

"Okay. Fine…" I jumped in the passenger side and Sora closed the door behind me.

"Don't forget to come by later Riku!" I heard Rikku yell. She sat in the back and slammed the door closed behind her and Sora jumped in the driver's side.

"Have you guys seen Roxas? I'm supposed to be taking him home too…"

"Last time I saw him was at lunch with Fujin and Olette," I answered, surprised by how easily I managed to speak to him, even though we hadn't talked for weeks now. Sora sighed.

"Maybe he'll catch a ride home with Seifer," he mumbled and started the engine.

When I got home, I saw that neither my father nor Namine were home yet. Namine had OSS and had been assigned some public service as well as mandatory counseling along with Larxene and Tifa. So I was surprised when Sora came in and made himself at home so easily. He took off his jacket and hung it up and then sat on the cough. I watched him a moment before asking, "What do you think you're doing?"

"I think I'll chill here until Namine gets back," he answered.

"Fine. Suit yourself."

"I will thanks." I shook my head and then saw Rikku run up the stairs in a blur of motion. I followed her partially out of curiosity and partially because I didn't feel right being in the same room as Sora.

Rikku was like a wild animal rummaging about in my room and I watched her in amazement.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"I need to freshen up before Rikku gets here!" She cried and ducked into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her.

"Okay… I'll get dinner started…" I went back downstairs and into the kitchen. Opening up cabinets and things, I found spaghetti and decided to cook it. As I started browning the meat and boiling the noodles, I was unaware of Sora's arrival. He had snuck up behind me and I felt hot breath against my neck. I spun around and was met with his striking blue eyes. My heart thumped against my chest and I said, "Sora…"

"Kairi," he acknowledged and then he looked into the pot behind me curiously.

"You're cooking?"

"Uh… yea. Spaghetti."

"Really? … I hope it's nothing fatal. Knowing you." I huffed angrily, finding his jab on my culinary skills not the least bit humorous. I heard him laugh and his laugh was so contagious that I laughed too. How did he have such an influential affect on me?

"Anyway. No one said you had to eat Sora. You can always go to your own house and stop mooching on us." He wrapped an arm around my shoulder.

"But I love your house because you guys feed me free of charge" He smelled so good. It was intoxicating and filled my senses.

"Sora…" As though he finally understood his power over me, he pulled away but was still in such a close proximity that I was still powerless.

"So… how did you and Demyx hook up?" I didn't miss the bitterness in his tone as he said it. Placing a cover over the noodles and the meat, I wondered away from the stove and took a seat at the table. I felt his eyes follow my every single movement.

"Why do you sound so angry? He's nice. I really like him…"

"You don't even know him," Sora snapped. I glared at him.

"Yes I do! We got to talk a lot yesterday after school… He was the only one there to consult me after what Namine did…" Sora came over and sat at the table with me.

"Why didn't you talk to me? I would've listened…"

"No you wouldn't! You'd been avoiding me these last couple of weeks, all day yesterday and now today you're angry at me and I don't know why! Look, I didn't have anything to do with Namine or Yuffie! I swear!"

"I know… and… it's not that Kairi. I wish it was… but it isn't that…"

"Then… what is it?" The pot of noodles started rocking from the boiling water inside. I went over and lowered the flame. Sora followed me and touched my hand. I tried to concentrate on the boiling noodles in need of a distraction because all kinds of thoughts rushed into my mind from the slight touch of Sora's flesh against my own. I couldn't think that way about Sora. He was my _sister's_ boyfriend. Not to mention, but Larxene was even scheming to have him for herself. He was the source of so much drama and I decided to let him go… But here I was, thinking about him because making the smallest contact with him was enough to push those doubts away. To stop loving him was impossible and it was killing me to not to be able to say to tell him.

"Sora?" I looked back at him and he gave me a funny look. Well, it wasn't funny like ha-ha funny. It was funny as in strange. His face was soft. Mellow. And he had some strange glint in his eyes.

"Kairi… I… Do you… I mean… I didn't really come to see Namine, Kairi. I wanted… I wanted to see you." My heart seemed to be racing against my mind. My mind was having a hard time trying to comprehend the words he said. My heart however interpreted the meaning exactly the way his words sounded, which caused me to feel anxious and nervous.

"Sora?"

"It's just… I can't get what happened those last two Saturdays outta my head Kairi. I… was there a reason you kissed me? I know I shouldn't care, I shouldn't ask but… it's not easy to push away or anything."

"Sora... I… it was just a kiss," I said. He looked at me incredulously and I felt my heart slow down as my mind took over.

"Just a kiss…? Just a kiss between two people who aren't lovers? That doesn't make any sense!"

"Well. You're the only one trying to make sense of it Sora. I know you were just comforting me… with your hand up my shirt… dry humping me against the bathroom wall... but you know, that's the way you decided to go about it." That sounded stupid even to me. But he suggested that he only kissed me as a means of comfort. So, I called it as I saw it. He smirked a little.

"So, you're telling me that I could kiss you right now, and you could take it without it meaning anything?" I shrugged.

"It'd be like a kiss on the cheek from grandma."

"Really?"

"Really." He chuckled a little and I sighed with annoyance. What was the point of this conversation? As I proceeded to cook once more, Sora forcefully pulled me into himself and kissed me. My heart once again took the lead and I couldn't fight the urge to not kiss back. His lips were warm. Inviting. He wrapped an arm around my waist and cupped my head with the other hand, stroking my hair gently. He broke the lock on my lips in favor of trailing hot kisses along my collar bone, traveling to my cleavage. I breathed nervously as I felt myself become victim of my body's desires. He kissed me on my neck, nibbling gently near my ear lobe and his hands ran up my thighs, resting on my butt. I moaned a little and he kissed me fully on the mouth more gently then before. He brought his hands up to cup my face. I kissed back, trying to force it to once again deepen but he wouldn't allow it. He pulled away, letting his lips brush against mine gently.

"…Tell me… tell me that that meant nothing to you Kairi… Tell me that that kiss meant nothing…"

"That wasn't _just_ a kiss Sora…" He smiled and I tried to kiss him again but he only pulled away. The door bell rang and I watched Sora hungrily. I heard Rikku rush about upstairs and then I heard her footsteps as she ran down the stairs, hurrying to open the front door. Sora didn't seem to be paying any attention.

"You want me Kairi… admit it."

"Sora! _You_ kissed _me_! You… you…"

"Admit it." He kissed me again and this time he put his tongue in my mouth. I groaned as a pleasurable sensation over came me. His one hand traveled underneath my shirt and I held it there. He broke away again and whispered breathily, "Admit it."

"Sora… I… I… I want you…"

"And the kiss Kairi?"

"I… I… I… oh Sora!" I pulled him by the collar of his shirt and forced myself on him. We kissed for a few minutes before I heard a gasp of surprise. Sora broke away, pulling himself away from me abruptly, taking his hand away from under my shirt. We both looked and saw a surprised Riku standing in the doorway. His aqua eyes held a look of disbelief and his mouth was still ajar from the gasp he let out earlier. I felt my face heat up and I turned my back on them. There was silence.

"Riku! Come on! What are you doing?" I heard Rikku calling from the living room.

"Uh… yea… right. Coming…," Riku said robotically. I heard his footsteps as he left the kitchen. My heart pounded against my chest and more blood rushed to my face. I wish I had called after him and told him it had all been a mistake but that would have been a lie. Sora and I knew what we were doing and neither of us regretted it. But still… I felt shitty.

"…Just a kiss on the cheek from grandma huh?" I heard Sora say with a slight snicker. I blushed some more and turned to look at him but his back was to me.

"Sora… what do we do now?" I heard Rikku and Riku talk in soft murmurs in the other room.

"What do you want Kairi?" What? Why ask me??? I was so jumbled up at the moment that he couldn't expect me to give a thoroughly thought through answer. So I went with, "… I'm with Demyx… and you… you have Namine…" Sora never turned around but I saw him stiffen slightly.

"…Thanks Kairi. That's all I needed to know…," he said softly. I watched him leave then I looked back at the boiling noodles. Warm tears fell from my eyes and I cried. What had I done? Sora wanted me. He wanted me and I turned him down… He wanted me… How could I be so blind?


	13. Chapter 7 Pt I

_**Chapter 7: Characterization**_

_**Part I: Perseverance**_

"You aren't right Kairi." I pretended not to know what he meant.

"What are you talking about Riku?" Sora had long since been gone. But there had been tenseness at dinner between the three of us. Sora acted like there wasn't a problem, Riku gave us accusing looks, and I tried to concentrate on the things Rikku was saying. I tried not to think about it at all. Now I was cleaning off the dinner plates and Riku was getting ready to leave, but not before confronting me about what had been bothering him all evening.

"Don't play dumb Kairi. I can't believe you call yourself Namine's sister! With family like you who needs enemies…" I felt a rage erupt inside me. Slamming a plate into the sink, shattering it, I turned to Riku and jabbed an accusing finger into his chest.

"You can't judge me Riku! Not when you did way more then kiss your best friend's girlfriend! How dare you!" Riku blushed with embarrassment before slapping my hand away.

"Yea, but me and Namine are over with. You and Sora need to stop before things get out of hand…"

"Stop acting like this is your concern!"

"It is! I'm not gonna sit back and let Sora cheat on Namine! I'm telling you right now, if you two don't stop I'm telling her." My heart stopped and I stared at him in disbelief. How could he betray me this way? He'd jeopardize the relationship I had with my sister (not that she hadn't ruined it enough already) and destroy her relationship with Sora, all so he could be some hero?? What did he think he'd get out of telling her? Her love? I grinned snidely and leaned up against the sink.

"You're pathetic. Namine doesn't want you Riku. She chose Sora, remember? Nothing you do will change her mind. She loves him. So, even if you did tell her, she wouldn't be yours." Riku winced and his hardened expression turned somber as the biting reality of my words killed his vigor. Suddenly, I remembered how hard it had been for him to let her go, how hard it had been to love someone he'd never have, and how bad I felt for him. Now I was filled with pity and guilt, sorry I had trespassed into such delicate territory.

"Even so… I won't let Sora hurt her… I won't…," he said firmly. I looked away from his condescending aqua eyes and focused my gaze at the shattered pieces of plate. I remembered the time I broke the vase and Sora had been there to heal my hand… my heart. Tears filled my eyes.

"I understand…," I mumbled, "… And…I… let him go Riku. There's nothing going on… nothing at all. It was just a kiss…" Riku cupped my cheek comfortingly.

"I know how you feel about him Kairi. But… for now… just be patient. If it's meant to be then it will be." I nodded my head slowly and cried.

I lay in my bed. Riku left, his threat still ringing loudly in my mind. I thought about Sora. How did he really feel? Why did he need to know what I felt? What had I done by choosing to remain with Demyx? Namine and my father came home late. I was alone in my room crying when Namine looked into the room and saw me. She sat on the bed next to me, laying a consoling hand on my shoulder. Despite all the hateful things we had been through recently, I couldn't help but welcome my sister's loving comfort and sat up to hug her. She returned the embrace and we stayed hugging like that for what seemed like an eternity. When I finally settled down, Namine and I lay together in the bed, facing one another. She smiled softly and stroked my hair.

"… I remember one time when we were little… there was a really bad thunderstorm outside and you were so scared of the lightning that you cried in your bed like now… I got up from my bed and came over to comfort you. Do you remember what I said to you Kai?" I sniffled a little and smiled as I recollected the same memory from the depths of my mind.

"You said… 'Don't cry Kairi. Nothing can hurt you as long as I'm here to protect you…'," I recalled. Namine nodded.

"I've noticed… how… lately… I haven't been your big sister… I feel really shitty about it too. I'm sorry Kairi. You've needed me and all I could think about is myself…"

"Wow… that counseling must be working…" I teased. Namine slapped my arm gently and laughed.

"I guess… But I wanna let you know, I never meant to drag you down with me but Larxene and Tifa had me frame you so that we wouldn't get punished but look how that plan worked out. Anyway, I don't know what I was thinking to put them before my little sister. I love you Kairi and I'm really sorry…"

"… I'm sorry too… I've actually blamed all my problems on you, can you imagine? I've hated you a lot lately… and that isn't right…"

"What happened to us? We used to be so close when we were younger…"

"… We've grown up… and it's a real shitty world to grow up in."

"Agreed." We giggled. Some time afterward, once we had shared with one another all the things that had been bothering us lately (I didn't tell her about the kiss with Sora though…), I was on the verge of falling asleep when I heard Namine whisper, "I'll protect you Kai…" I smiled and mumbled, "I'll protect you too Ne'…"

The next morning I felt as though a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I practically glided downstairs and pecked my mother on the cheek. She laughed.

"What's got you in such a good mood today? And you woke up on your own. Are you sick?"

"No mom… For once, I'm happy."

Demyx came to pick me and Rikku up and the both of us rushed outside only to see that along with Demyx, came Seifer, Fujin, and Riku. I glanced at Riku briefly before looking worriedly at Fujin.

"What's up?" I asked. Fujin shook her head and wrapped an arm around my shoulder.

"I've got some… news to share…" With those six words, my happiness was damned.

"Get in Kairi," Demyx ordered gently. I nodded and followed Fujin, Seifer, and Demyx to the car. Then remembering Rikku, I turned around.

"Are you coming?"

"Riku said he'd give me a ride this morning. You have fun…," she said uncertainly. I nodded and shut the door behind me. Demyx pulled away from the driveway and the car was quiet except the sound of the wheels on the pavement and the wind against Seifer's slightly opened window. I was grateful for the silence though because I knew that with the end of the silence, was the end of my happiness.

"… Olette's the pregnant girl," Fujin said suddenly. I sucked in a quick breath and gasped.

"… Oh no…"

"Yea. I found out yesterday… She'd known for a while now. She says it's Hayner's baby. I can't even imagine how she's feeling right now…"

"She told you on her own?"

"No. I had to force it outta her. You remember when we were talking about the sick bitch that left all those pregnancy tests in the bathroom yesterday? Turns out Olette's the sick bitch."

"…So that's why she's been eating so much…"

"And throwing up." We were quiet as we processed this information.

"I feel bad… all those cracks… she must feel disgusting as it is with bearing that bastard's child… Is she going to abort it?" I said. Fujin shrugged and slumped in her seat.

"… Poor Olette…" I could hear from her tone that Fujin felt really bad for her friend and so did I. I patted her shoulder in a friendly way.

"She won't be at school today then? Has she told her mom?" Fujin shook her head.

"I think she could use her friends right now…" Fujin looked at me and I grinned.

"Demyx. Can you take us to Olette's place? We're skipping school today."

"But… what if your mother finds out?? I'll be held accountable and…"

"You worry too much. Just do this for me. Please?"

"… Okay."

When we got to the intersection in the direction of the school, Demyx turned around and headed towards Olette's estate. It was even more magnificent a second time. Fujin and I scrambled out the car and slammed the doors behind us. I looked at Demyx and smiled.

"Thanks hun. I owe you one…"

"You can thank me properly now," He said. I giggled and leaned forward into his lowered window. He met me half way and we kissed. I pulled away abruptly feeling a strange sensation in the bottom of my stomach. Was it guilt? He gave me a look and whispered, "Listen… I'm really sorry I wasn't there after school yesterday but Zexion got us a gig to play at and…"

"You don't owe me any explanation… I just…" I couldn't finish my sentence and so didn't try to. I smiled reassuringly and backed away from the car. Demyx watched me a little longer before pulling out the driveway, leaving me and Fujin alone to enter Olette's home.

Together, hesitantly, we traveled through the large gate that kept people off of the estate and through the yard until we reached the main entrance. Taking a deep breath, I pushed the door bell. After a rather long minute, we were still standing at the door looking dumb and unattended. I exchanged confused looks with Fujin, who shrugged uncertainly.

"Come on. There's a window over there…," I said. Fujin followed me eagerly and the both of us peered into the window. There was no one there.

"She isn't home then…," Fujin stated. I sighed.

"… I still feel like we should do something…"

"I know… Hey! Let's go shopping! We can get her something that says we're sorry but won't make her feel bad about what's going on."

"Yea. Good idea. Let's go."

Fujin and I spent the greater part of the day in the shopping district. All the stores were filling their shelves with Christmas decorations and had holiday jingles playing for the costumers as they shopped. I began to think about the baby. It was conceived at the end of November, so that would mean that it would be born in July right? As we shopped, I tried to steer clear of things that might seem summerish. Not that the stores were supplying warm weather things, but still it wouldn't look good if Olette had been putting that much thought into her future. Fujin was more practical about shopping. She wasn't looking at things that would hurt Olette's feelings. Instead, she was looking at Olette's favorite things. Unfortunately, Olette's favorite things were books and sports equipment. Would getting sports equipment remind Olette that she wouldn't be able to stay a track star? Would she even be able to participate in track since she'd be at least six months pregnant by then? Tears started to form in my eyes. It wasn't fair how Olette was made to pay for the actions of some sick bastard! Fujin stopped looking at jogging suits in favor of looking at me after hearing a sniffle.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Everything… Well… I don't think it's fair that Olette has to go through this… It's not right." Fujin watched me a little longer and her eyes softened.

"I know… I don't even know what to get her now. What could possibly make this situation any better? I mean. If we get her the jogging suit, she'll just outgrow it right? Then, she'll be reminded of the stuff she'll have to give up…" I sighed again and inhaled a deep breath. I felt my anger rise the more I thought about it.

"Dammit!" An old lady looked our way, and I blushed.

"Uh… Pardon me…" She shook her head and walked away mumbling under her breath.

"… Maybe… We should put some more thought into this…"

"I agree. It's no good. Not until we know how she's doing," Fujin said. We left and decided to go to school once we agreed that we would make ourselves productive some kind of way today.

Once we arrived it was free period, the extra fifty-five minutes between our sixth hour and the end of the day. We had to go to our first hours since they were designated as our homerooms for the year. Being so distracted with Olette's pregnancy, I forgot to be aware of Sora, Riku, Yuffie, and even Garnet. Mr. Vexen had split us into pairs again and I was working with Garnet. She seemed uninterested in my being present, however. It almost seemed to me like she was pissed about something.

"Uh… so. Did you look over the draft I made of the argument?" I asked, trying to break the silence between us. Garnet didn't even look at me when she answered, "I missed you this morning. I was hoping to have this finished today." I didn't miss the contempt in her words.

"Uh… sorry… I uh… had some things to check on."

"Hm. More important than school I am guessing." Was she mocking me?

"What?" I asked in genuine confusion.

"I told you that if you were not going to take this seriously, then do not bother to waste my time."

"What are you talking about? I did help out like I said I would. Geez, I had some things that needed to be worked out! … You know that school isn't everything right? Maybe that's why you haven't got any friends. You're just a nerdy bookworm." Garnet paused in her writing. I watched her intently, glad that I hurt her feelings. I had enough of her second guessing me and judging me. Even if I did do my best, what good would it be? You're only in school once and half the stuff you learn didn't even apply in the real world.

"… You are a person of poor character. I was not trying to insult you or anything. Was it not you who had said you would work on this project, yet failed to show up? It is due at the end of the week and it is already Wednesday. Do not get mad at me because you are poor in completing your obligations."

"Whatever. I've priorities and so sorry if this is at the bottom of the list. Damn, you know what? If you think this is so damn important, then work on it by yourself! I don't need this crap! If I wanted to be chastised I'd go talk to my damn mother. I mean, no one wants to be around a fucking nag all the frickin' time!" After blowing the casket, I stood up angrily and so did Garnet. She glared at me and gathered her things then went to another end of the room. I went to the other end. The class watched us in perplexity before continuing their own projects. I was still blowing steam from my ears when Sora came up to me. He laid a hand on my shoulder to get my attention and was successful as I looked at him expectantly.

"What the hell are you doing Kairi?"

"What? Don't come over here trying to rag on me too. I've had enough of that for one day," I glared at Garnet as I spoke. She had her face buried in a book. Sora sighed and sat down beside me.

"I'm not gonna rag on you. Just tell me why you two had this little falling out."

"Does it really matter Sora? I mean, I just said what everyone thinks of her and is too embarrassed to say," I said the last part of my sentence loud enough for her to hear.

"Kairi. Stop being a bitch." His words cut through me like a sword. I winced a little and folded my arms.

"Whatever. I'm not sorry I said it."

"Listen to me Kai. There was no reason to say the things you said to her. She's just doing the assignment like the rest of us and wants it done on time so she'll have a decent grade for the midterm. It's not her fault that you aren't taking yourself seriously enough." He was actually taking her side in this??

"What does taking myself seriously have to do with the assignment? I do take myself seriously! She's the one who doesn't take me seriously! I mean, I worked my ass off on that draft! And you said you weren't gonna rag on me!!" Sora sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"Sorry. I'm just trying to tell you that no one else can take you seriously if you only dilly dally. You wrote a draft. Okay. And Garnet's been working her ass off too, finding the information you needed to do the damn thing. She's been working for these last five class periods to your two. You want a damn medal or something?" I coulda killed him. Or worse. I coulda told everybody he made out with me twice, and both times he past second base. But I couldn't, not without drowning myself in more hot water than I was already in. Besides, I suppose I was only angry because he was making sense. But still. Why did I have to be attacked every time I screwed up? I mean… I was doing the best I could. I got so frustrated that tears brimmed my eyes and I got even more frustrated because I was about to cry. Sora comfortingly touched my hand and smiled warmly at me.

"I don't mean to be mean or anything. It's just, you're acting really bitchy and I don't think it suits you too much," he said softly, "And I don't think you should take your frustrations out on Garnet. Afterall, she's basically the only way you're gonna get an 'A' on the assignment." I looked at him. He leaned in close to my ear and whispered, "You can tell me what's wrong Kai. Whenever you're ready. I'll listen." His breath was warm and smelled good. I felt myself blush a little. He lingered for a moment, seemingly soaking in as much of the closeness as possible before he moved away. My heart was racing. Sora grinned again and patted my head before going back to work with Yuffie, who was watching us closely with narrowed eyes. She wasn't the only one. Riku saw our exchange and seemed miffed. I just tried to calm myself and breathed. The bell rang, signaling our freedom… or should I say my freedom.

I waited until Garnet came out of the class and said, "Hey… Garnet!" She didn't acknowledge me and continued to walk through the crowd to get to her locker. I followed her determined to get her to listen to me. I wouldn't appear a bitch because that was not who I wanted to be, so it was time to correct this.

"Garnet please listen to me… Or not. Fine. Just know that I'm sorry about those things I said. I didn't mean to direct my frustrations out on you or anything, but it just seemed to me like you were attacking me and everything and… I'm sorry." Garnet continued to stuff her backpack with books and things. I couldn't be sure if she\ heard anything I said. Sighing with defeat, I hung my head and started to walk away.

"You know, I guess you are not of poor character after all… If you really are apologetic then you can make it up to me by coming to my house to work on the project then." I stopped and looked back at her. She offered a small friendly smile, though it seemed strained, and I grinned back.

"Sure. We'll definitely get it done today… Or would you rather I come over tomorrow?"

"Whatever works best for you is fine." As she said this, she shouldered her colossal backpack and began to walk to the bus. What? Was she gonna sit around and wait for me to come over and then if I didn't come over, would she just assume I'd be over some other time and then wait all over again??

"I'll be over tonight!" I called after her. She gave a thumbs up as a way of letting me know that she heard me. What a strange chick. Her parents must have her secluded all the time.

I walked out into the parking lot and saw that, once again, Demyx wasn't there. I couldn't be angry though. He didn't know I had decided to go to school after all. Sora was there and so was Riku and Rikku. Riku looked at me meaningfully and I hung my head.

"Hey Kai! Hurry up so we can get outta here already!" I heard Sora say, "You know that we have a game tonight don't you?? It's all the way on the other side of the island and we can't be late!" I cringed. I had totally forgotten about it. Mostly because I didn't care about the Blitz team anyway, I mean the sport not so much the individual players… Then I remembered Garnet. I said I'd be at her house tonight. If I didn't show, she'd get angry at me again and I might never live it down.

"Oh shit…," I whined.

"Hurry up! Shit we've got warm up to go through and everything," Riku said.

"I said I would go to Garnet's place to finish our project for first hour," I explained as I walked over to them hesitantly. Sora seemed disappointed.

"That sucks. I wanted you to see us win so you could eat your words from earlier. Why can't you just reschedule? Demyx is playing. Come on Kai!" The whining was not becoming. I merely shrugged and said, "But I told her that I was gonna be there so I gotta be there. Maybe if you guys win and get to play another game I'll go to that one. Sorry guys…"

"Fine then. I'll take you home. But who's gonna drive you over there?" I shrugged.

"I'll think of something…" Riku watched the both of us and decided to jump in.

"I'll take her home. You're captain Sora. It'll look bad if you're late." Sora looked at his friend and then put a thumb to his chin in a thoughtful manner. His eyes drifted back to me and I smiled with a tinge of embarrassment on my cheeks. We both knew what Riku was doing. Now I wondered how Sora would respond.

"I guess you're right Riku. But if I don't make it on time you're second in command right? It'll be alright. I won't be late. Now we better get going." I felt somewhat flattered that Sora would choose me over doing what was right, but then I felt guilty because he'd rather choose me then do what was right… if that made any sense.

"No. Riku can take me home. Hurry and go win a game… for once." Sora looked disappointed but he nodded and sighing, entered his car.

"Hurry up Riku!" He shouted from his window before pulling out and driving off. Rikku and Riku entered Riku's car and I followed, slightly bewildered with my own perseverance. I wanted to be with Sora, but not if it meant going against what I believed was right. He was Namine's boyfriend, and for now I wouldn't go against that.


	14. Chapter 7 Pt II

_**Chapter 7: Characterization**_

_**Part II: Don't judge me before you know me**_

I decided to catch the bus over to Garnet's place. Her house was a nice size. A modern two story house with a basement. Of course, the outside was just a cover for what was inside. Inside, it was like walking into some medieval, fairytale castle or something. Knight's crests hung on the walls, javelins and other old time weaponry decorated the main room, and the main color scheme was royal blue.. I couldn't help but feel that I got the better deal. Everyone else was too busy watching our Blitzball team lose while I got to step through a time machine.

Garnet descended the stairs, dressed casually in modern day jeans and a tee. Now if her clothing wasn't an anachronism for the rest of the place I must not have been as well educated as I originally thought.

"Hello," she greeted. I smiled.

"Hi. Uh… nice place." Garnet actually blushed from my compliment and smiled uncertainly.

"Can I get you anything?"

"Uh… I didn't get to eat lunch so… I'm kinda hungry…"

"Right. Follow me to the kitchen." She glided gracefully and easily through the living room and led us to the kitchen. She opted to warm up some left over pizza and poured two glasses of soda. I watched in awe. I didn't know Garnet ate that kind of stuff. Given, what teenager wouldn't pig out on junk foods? She was always so proper. I bet she ate the pizza with a fork and knife. After the food was warmed up and sizzling hot, she offered me some cheesy breadsticks with sauce. Yuum. I then followed her to her room.

Wow. Her room was niiiiiiiiiiice. She had a wide screen, HD, plasma TV that came with surround sound and a built in DVD/ CD Rom player. There was large glass case next to the TV and inside were countless CD's. The CD's looked like books at first, but the books were on a book case near her canopy bed and there weren't nearly as many books as CD's. So Garnet was a music junky? I walked around, sitting my food on a nearby table that stood in the middle of the room, in favor of studying her large closet that had a million different clothes in it along with shoes. Posters of fantasy creatures or famous celebrities decorated her baby blue walls and I saw that she had a couple of Zidane posters. He was a famous movie star. On her desk where her laptop sat, was a framed autographed photo of her and Zidane. I picked it up and studied it. Garnet had a blush on her cheeks and goofy smile as Zidane wrapped a muscular arm around her, giving the peace sign to the camera. Behind them was what looked like the set of his latest movie called, _Pirates_. Hmm.

"Do you know Zidane Tribal?" I asked, sitting the picture back on her desk. Garnet had bit off a large piece of pizza and put a finger up as she hurried to swallow. Guess she wasn't as proper as I originally thought.

"Yes!" She said finally, "I have known him since before he was famous." My mouth dropped at her sudden confession.

"Seriously?? How so?" Blushing a little in her modesty, Garnet dismissed the question with a wave of the hand.

"It is not that big of a deal really. I mean, the story is not too important." I sat down beside her and proceeded to shake her by the shoulders.

"Telllll meeeeeeeee!" After I stopped shaking her, Garnet sighed and giving in said, "Well… We both are originally from Alexandria. We were neighbors and our parents used to work together. After my mother got transferred here, Zidane's father passed away and then he was adopted by his godfather, the famous movie director Baku. After that, he became a star, but we always kept in touch." I saw that a distant look had come into Garnet's eyes and grinned.

"You like him huh?" Her face reddened.

"Uh… What? What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean. Just how close are you two anyway?"

"You are getting a little personal. I mean…"

"So you do like him? How come you two haven't hit it off yet?" Garnet began poking her pointer fingers together.

"… He is… famous… I mean… how do you even know that he feels the same way?"

"Well, have you told him how you feel yet?" She shook her head.

"Anyway, you came over here to help me finish our project. Now come on, the computer is over here." She grabbed her food and sat down at her desk. Sighing, I went and got my own plate and then joined her.

The next few hours, wecompleted our project and were just surfing the net. We went to an online dating service and chatted with this really perverted old thirty-six year old. When we told him were two underage high school girls playing a prank, he cussed us out and threatened to find out where we lived. We laughed for a long time about that one because we didn't give him our address, plus he was millions of miles away. After that we listened to some music and started dancing around like retards trying our best to sing like the originals; we used the bed as our stage and her cordless phone as a mike. Personally, I think our singing wasn't even fit enough for a karaoke bar. Then, after we completely tired ourselves out, we pigged out on chips and I played with her cell phone. As I lay lazily on her bed, I scrolled through the address book and found Zidane's number. Without thinking, I called it.

"Hello?" A young man's voice said after a couple of rings. My heart started racing.

"Uh…uh…uh… is…is this… Zidane Tribal?" Garnet gave me a shocked look and the voice answered, "Yes. Who's this?" I sat up and looked at Garnet for help. She started laughing.

"Uh… this is Kairi Trepe. I'm a friend of Garnet's," I answered. Garnet's mouth dropped and she threw a potato chip at my head.

"Really? I was wondering how you got this number. It's a private line," he said.

"Oh really? Sorry…. I was just playing with Garnet's phone and found it. So, you must really like Garnet to give her access to your private line…" Garnet's face heated up once more and she got up from her beanbag chair threateningly.

"Get off the phone right now!" She mouthed. I turned my head and ignored her.

"Uh… we go way back," he stated. I heard rushing water and asked, "Working on another movie? Did I call at a bad time?"

"Actually, I'm cleaning out my pool. I don't start shooting the movie for another week or so. Listen, is Garnet there? I want to talk with her." Turning back to my friend, I grinned, "Yea, she's here, pigging out on chips." Garnet tackled me and started pinching me.

"Ow! Ow! Quit it Garnet!!"

"Hello?"

"Why did you tell him that!!?"

"So you like to eat, so what? He wants to talk to you! Here! Here!" Garnet snatched the phone and clearing her voice said, "H… Hey Zidane." I watched her and laughed.

"Put it on speaker!" I mouthed. Garnet obliged and put the phone on speaker.

"Hey, I haven't talked with you in a while Garnet. I'm kinda glad you leave your phone where random people can get a hold of it. Otherwise we wouldn't be talking right now." Garnet giggled and rolled her eyes.

"Whatever. I _am_ a responsible person. Kairi is just a little meddlesome," Garnet stated. I slapped her arm and she cried out.

"Hello? What was that?"

"I am in an abusive friendship! That is what that was!" She kicked me and I fell off the bed with a big _fwomp_! We busted out laughing and Zidane was silent on the other end.

"Anyway, sorry Zidane. Are you still there?"

"Yea. So, uh… I want to talk to you about somethin'…," the actor said hesitantly. Garnet didn't miss the drop in his pitch. She stared hard at the phone.

"What is it?" There was silence on the other end, it didn't last long but it seemed like forever.

"I wanted to tell you before it got out in the tabloids and entertainment shows… Uh… Wow. This is a lot harder then I thought it was gonna be… Garnet. I… I… I've got cancer. Leukemia, like my dad had." My mouth dropped and I looked at Garnet. Her eyes filled with tears and she grabbed the phone and put it to her ear.

"Oh my God! How long have you known?"

"A few weeks now."

"Are you okay?"

"I've been better. Um… they've started treatment. Right now, they're looking for matching marrow. I'm gonna get a transfusion…"

"When is the surgery?"

"As soon as they find a match… Garnet. I… don't want to die."

"…You will not. You cannot."

"Heh. You don't know that… oh God…"

"Zidane. It is going to be okay. I am here." More silence.

"Zidane?"

"… I want to see you. When's the soonest you can get to Daguerreo?"

"Uh… I do not know. I will have to see…"

"Well, let me know soon alright? You never know after all. Anyway, I gotta go now. Bye."

"…Bye. I will talk to you later."

"Hopefully." With that said, he hung up and Garnet did so as well. She looked at me and I looked at my hands, wanting to avoid her gaze. I was so embarrassed. I only called as a prank. I didn't think he'd pick up. Was she mad at me?

"I cannot believe it," she whispered, "Zidane… The last time I saw him he was okay. He was happy and over zealous because of his new movie… I should have known something was wrong when he had not talked to me in a while. Oh man… To think… he would have died and I would not have known anything about it… He can be so selfish!! What was he thinking not telling me until now?? I bet it has been so hard for him,"

"So… you're gonna go?" Garnet looked at me and nodded with determination.

"Yes. I have to. He needs me…"

"Man. This is so unfair. But, you need to tell him how you feel. What if he…" Garnet looked at her ceiling as though finding it more interesting than the conversation at hand.

"…Do you need a ride home? I've got my mother's other car. I can drive you."

"Yea… okay

"Alright. Come on." She rolled off her bed and left the room. I followed after her.

The ride home was smooth and quiet. She played the radio but only slow songs were playing. The music did nothing to improve our moods. My father and Namine were home when we pulled into the driveway. Feeling like I should say something before I left, I turned to Garnet and said, "I'm glad we finished our project. This has probably been the most work I've done since school started. Thanks to your pushing me, I actually did something constructive. Thanks."

"Kairi, you have to have the will to want to do something in order to accomplish anything. So, thank yourself. But I am grateful that you came over. If not, I probably would have found out about Zidane on the TV or in some crap magazine."

"I hope he gets better."

"Me too."

"I had fun. Let's hang out again sometime, okay?"

"Yea. Most definitely. Good-bye Kairi."

"Bye." I got out the car and waved bye to her as she pulled out the driveway and drove away. Then I went into the house.

Rikku was home along with Namine, Sora, Riku, and the rest of the Blitzball Team who were all in the kitchen making a mess. Well, it looked like a mess, but in fact, it was a party. They saw me and cornered me.

"Oh my gosh! Kairi you missed it! Our blitz team won by a landslide!! It was amazing!! I've never seen blitzball playing that good since… never!!" Rikku exclaimed. Sora ruffled my hair and handed me a Suicide (a concoction of mixed beverages).

"Yea! Damn, man, we were totally in the zone!! We kicked their asses!! Now you gotta eat your own words Kairi!" He cried. I pushed him away.

"You guys just got lucky! Let's see how you do in the tournaments."

"We'll be bringing home that fine ass trophy that's how we'll do and then they are gonna hafta bow down cuz we will become the kings of everyone of those bitches!!!!!!! Whooooooooo!! Bow down bitches!!!" Wakka exclaimed. Everyone went crazy and started doing the game cheer. I rolled my eyes.

"Yea. Right. Lick your own shoes. I've got better things to do with my time." No one heard me because everyone had started doing all kinds of stuff, such as going over the highlights of the game. I didn't care to listen; instead I went to my room where I proceeded to take off my clothes to change into my pajamas. I was unbuttoning my shirt when I heard something. Turning around, I saw Demyx on my bed. He was watching me intently and I quickly buttoned my top back up, blushing furiously.

"Geez Demyx! What the hell are you doing in my room? And then just sitting there watching me strip to my underwear…" He smiled.

"Oh come on babe. It's not that big a deal. I'm sorry though. I only came up here because I missed you at school and at the game. Where'd you go anyway?" I shrugged.

"I went to Garnet's place so we could finish our project for first hour."

"Really? How was it?"

"Huh? Uh. It was pretty fun. Garnet's a cool girl. And guess what! She knows Zidane Tribal! His private number is in her cell phone! Can you believe it??" I couldn't contain myself and jumped on Demyx in my excitement. He laughed and said, "No. I can't. How exactly did she come to know someone as famous as he?"

"Well, they grew up together. I got to talk to him and everything!!" I strayed from the subject of his cancer since no one knew yet but Garnet and I. That was special and I was sure he wasn't ready for people knowing just yet as sad as it was. I felt Demyx's hand on the small of my back and I was brought out of my reveries. I looked at him and he looked back at me. There was something weird about his look. I tried to play it off and started a new conversation.

"And anyway, as for school, after you and Seifer left, we went to Olette's house but no one was home and then we decided to go shopping to get her something to make her feel better. We couldn't find anything of course so we went back to school for the last couple of hours."

"Mm hm…" His hand began to snake its way up my shirt. A tingling sensation crawl up my spine. I got up off of him and went to my vanity in an attempt to keep space between us.

"So, I heard that the game was a big success. Did you get to play?" I didn't care much for the game, but as a member of the team I knew that it was something that Demyx cared strongly about. By bringing it up, I was hoping that he'd focus on the discussion and not the fact that we were in my bedroom. All alone. That thought was bothering me a little. But I had more self control then Demyx had. My boyfriend got up from the bed and came up behind me. He wrapped his arms around my waist from behind and started kissing my neck.

"Uh… Demyx…," I mumbled. I turned and looked at him. Looking into his eyes at that point was like looking into some void. They were so blank like he was in some kind of trance. He didn't even hear my voice, but he just took me into his arms and kissed me gently. My heart thumped painfully in my chest. Slowly, his hands worked their ways up my shirt and then traveled along my thighs. I inhaled a sharp breath, which he took as permission to continue. Forcefully, he pushed me onto the bed and spread my legs. He Frenched me as his hands maneuvered around the contours of my body.

"D…Demyx… my father's home… he's… right down the hall…" The words were hard to come to my mind and even harder to say because I was so distracted by all the things he was doing to me.

"Hmm…then we better not make a lot of noise," he said. He ripped my shirt open and I gasped.

"B…but Demyx… I'm… I'm not ready…." His hand went down my pants. I jumped and let out a whine. He smiled.

"Seems like you're ready to me," he murmured.

"No… st…stop…" He popped my bra off and he threw his own shirt to the ground in less than a second. My brain was fuzzy as he sucked one of my nipples like a hungry baby while he massaged the other between his thumb and index finger. I was entranced. His body was warm against mine. His mouth worked its way to my navel and his hands traveled downwards as well. He was proceeding to strip off my pants when the door opened and I heard, "Oh!" Demyx turned around and cussed under his breath. He got off me and I sat up to see Sora standing in the doorway. I blushed and snatched up some of my covers to cover my exposed torso. Sora just stared at us and a long, tense noiselessness ensued.

"Geez Sora. Don't you know how to knock?" Demyx questioned. I heard the bitterness in his voice and looked at Sora to see how he'd react. I could tell he was pissed despite his calm expression. Grinning, he said, "Right. Sorry about that man. I'll just let you guys get back to doing whatever it is you were doing…" He looked at me and I felt my stomach flop.

"Don't forget to use protection kiddies!" Demyx laughed.

"Yea man. Whatever." Sora lingered a moment or two longer before slowly closing the door behind him. After I recomposed myself, I looked at Demyx and said, "Uh… maybe… maybe you should go…"

"What the hell are you talking about Kairi? Don't be embarrassed or anything. It's just Sora… oh. Don't tell me that you still…"

"Demyx. We've only been dating a few days, alright? You can't just erase four years of affection that fast!"

"Tell me about it! I've been liking you since middle school! Man… damn! I don't get it Kairi! He goes out with Namine! He'll probably never care about you the same way and yet you still like him! What the hell!?" I frowned.

"Oh you're just upset because I won't sleep with you. Well, why don't you go find one of those little bimbos who worship you? I'm sure they'll gladly put out. Since sex is all you seem to want I'm guessing it doesn't matter who the hell you get it from!" I didn't mean to piss him off. I just wanted to prove my point, but I guess I had angered him because he took me by the wrists and pushed me down under him. He kept my arms above my head and angrily glared down at me.

"Dammit Kairi! I don't just want sex! I told you before that I'm not that kind of guy! You're too busy chasin' after Sora that you can't see it but I've got such strong feelings for you that I don't know how else to express them! I wouldn't do this with any other girl Kairi. You're the only one I want…" I stared at his eyes and saw that he was truly sincere. My heart started beating really fast and I looked away.

"…Maybe… Maybe I'm not the one for you Demyx…," I whispered. I heard him laugh softly.

"I disagree… You can't tell me you weren't feelin' it before Sora walked in…" I felt myself blush. Demyx lowered his face down next to mine and he whispered, "I'll wait as long as I need to… and then…" He parted my legs with his own and started to move his hips. The pleasurable sensation he caused was enough to make me groan and he kissed me more passionately than before. I wrapped my arms around his neck and his lower body started moving more rapidly.

"Oh Demyx…Demyx…" My breathy reply to his actions just made him stop his tantalizing attack on my body and he pulled away from me.

"One day… One day I'll have you to myself Kairi… One day…" My breathing had picked up and I looked back at him hungrily. He got up, put on his shirt and looking at me one final time, opened the door and exited my room. I lay there unmoving. Many thoughts entered my mind. But of all them, my memory of Sora walking in on me and Demyx was the one I focused on the most. I felt so shitty.

I didn't go back down stairs. The party ended early since it was a school night and the next game was tomorrow. The team wanted to be well rested and ready. I sat in my room. I had changed into my pajamas but I couldn't get rid of the feeling of Demyx's naked flesh against my own. Given, it was just the top of his body but still… He was well toned and… Anyway, I couldn't understand how he made me act that way when Sora was the one who I loved. I kept asking myself questions. Did I just keep Demyx around because I knew he worshipped me? Or because I knew that he wanted me, and I secretly wanted him back? Was I turned on because I knew I was only using him as a temporary substitute until Sora and I could be together? Or did I actually want Demyx? Was it lust or love? How could someone tell the difference? I fell asleep with such thoughts circling around my mind.


	15. Chapter 7 Pt III

_**Chapter 7: Characterization**_

_**Part III: Not who I seem**_

"I think I'm joining the Blitzball Team," Rikku said. I was sitting at the table and focused on my eggs until I heard her comment. I looked at her and asked, "What would you wanna go and do that for?"

"Oh you know…" I gave her a look.

"No. I don't. Hence the reason I'm asking why you'd want to do it." Blushing slightly, she looked to make sure my mother was out of hearing range before whispering to me, "I really want to get closer to Riku." I shook my head disapprovingly.

"What? What's so wrong with that? I mean, I really like him Kairi. I mean, like a lot. I want him to be my boyfriend."

"And you think that by joining the team he'll automatically fall head over heals and ask you to be his girlfriend? You realize you're only fifteen and he's eighteen. He could get in trouble for having a relationship with a minor, which I doubt he is too enthusiastic about," I explained. I forked some more eggs into my mouth and as I chewed Rikku smiled mischievously and said, "Yea. So you think. We've kissed already." I nearly choked on my eggs.

"Say what!??" I asked. She nodded giddily as though confirming my suspicions.

"I know! It happened after the game yesterday. I guess all the ecstasy going on around us was enough to push us together. I mean, the attraction has always been there…"

"You act like you've known him for years. It's only been a week," I interrupted. She ignored my comment and said, "But something is holding him back. It's like he doesn't want to get close. But… I know he would… I'm just going to give him that extra umph he needs to be mine!" After saying so, she clasped her hands together and swooned dreamily.

"Oh… how I love thee… Let me count the ways… one, two, three, four, five…"

"Are you serious? Ew."

"Who's got you all spaced out?" We both looked at Namine, who came from upstairs and heard Rikku's last comment. I felt nervous. I mean, I knew that her and Riku were done with, but… that pain would still be fresh wouldn't it? Her hearing about Rikku and Riku might be like putting peroxide on a fresh cut. Changing the subject, I asked, "So, it's Saturday. What are we gonna do today fam?" Namine grumbled and sat at the table. Mom looked at us excitedly.

"Oooh! It has been a while since all of us have been home together. What _should_ we do?" I didn't mean to get her so hyped. I myself had planned to eat ramen noodles and watch cartoons all day.

"Uh…mom-''

"Oh! Mrs. Trepe! We could go sightseeing and things of that nature since I still don't know my way around here too well yet."

"Oh yea… You _did_ just get here… It's like you've always been apart of the family so it's easy to forget." Namine snickered, but I nodded in agreement with my mother. Rikku blushed sweetly and said, "So it's a go-go then?"

"Of course. I think that would be perfect to see the sights of the island with my family."

"But mother! Sora and I had a date planned!"

"And I wanna get fat by eating all the food while watching cartoons!" My mother clicked her tongue against the top of her mouth and put her hands on her hips.

"Just reschedule your date Namine and Kairi… don't even go there." She continued cooking and Namine grumbled under her breath some more. Rikku smiled happily and I sighed.

"Whatever." So after breakfast, we got dressed. Namine and I had a rough time wrestling our father away from the bed. I guess he planned on sleeping in. What a great idea. He wasn't too keen on having to get up and escort a group of ladies but then he changed his mind with some persuasion from my mother. We piled up in his car and pulled out the driveway.

Rikku had the window seat and so did Namine. I was stuck in the middle. I hated sitting in the middle.

"So… Where do you people wanna go? Any ideas? Any ideas at _all_?"

"Rufus, stop it. Just drive around for a little while and then we'll let you know if there's anything that catches our eyes," My mother told. I smiled when I heard my dad mutter under his breath, "I was under the impression you had our destination planned out… why else would you wake a sleeping man…? Got me wasting gas to drive around aimlessly…" My mom glared at him but said nothing.

"Oooh! How about we show Rikku the new shopping center? She can buy some souvenirs to take when she goes _back home_," Namine suggested putting emphasis on the words "back" and "home." Rikku didn't seem to notice, but she nodded and said merrily, "Oooh yea! Shopping!"

"I don't have any objections. How about you Rufus?"

"Do I have to answer that… honestly?"

"You're such a joy killer." I sat back in my seat and decided that it was going to be a long day.

The mall was packed and my dad spent a long time trying to find a parking space. When we finally did find one, it was so far from the entrance that it took just as long as it did getting to the building as it had trying to find a place to park. Rikku was in awe of all the shops and things to buy.

"Ohmigosh! I dunno where to start!" She cried.

"Kairi, Namine, why don't you show her some of your favorite shops? We'll all meet back here at lunch time," my mother said. My dad gave her an incredulous look.

"Are you telling me, this is going to take four hours?"

"Ta-ta girls. Away with you." Namine grabbed my arm and pulled me through the crowd. Rikku followed and I was scared she was going to get lost because she was so small so I grabbed her and pulled her along in the direction Namine was pulling me. My sister had led us to a video game store where I saw Sora's familiar spiky hair. I gulped and tried to hide when Namine finally let me go.

"Hey Sora!" She called. He turned away from what he was doing and grinned.

"Yo!" He walked over to us and said, "So you ditched our date to come here huh?" Namine socked him in the arm.

"Not my fault. _Rikku_ wanted to go sightseeing so my mom made it a 'family outing day'," she explained while glaring at the younger girl.

"Hi Sora!" Rikku greeted friendly, "Is Riku with you?"

"'Fraid not Rikku. Unfortunately, I too have been dragged away to have a family day, after telling my parents that my date had been cancelled. Go figure. But that means that Demyx, isn't here either, Kairi." He practically spit out my name like it had made a foul taste in his mouth. I rolled my eyes.

"I'm not retarded I figured that out a long time ago. Dolt." I couldn't hold in my temper. How dare he get angry? Who was he to get angry for anyway? He frowned and I frowned. We stood glaring at each other. Namine and Rikku exchanged confused looks.

"Oh screw it! Come on Namine," he said pulling her by the arm and taking her away. She looked back at Rikku and me and waved bye.

"That jerk," I hissed icily.

"Uh… I thought you and Sora were friends…"

"Whatever. Come on. If he's having a family outing then that means that Roxas is here and he might know something about Olette. Let us go and search."

"But… I wanna shop."

"Oh come on. There'll be plenty of time to shop. So move it!" I yanked her arm and pulled her through the crowd.

We searched for a good hour and either he had decided to ditch his family, or he was deliberately avoiding us. Rikku started getting pissy about shopping so I gave up and took her to a body wash store. It had other things besides shower gel and lotions, so I thought she might be interested. As she looked at some calming incense, I saw Roxas at a nearby perfume stand. He was checking out the different scents.

"Hold up Rikku. I'll be right back." She shrugged and continued looking and I went over to Roxas. He was holding a cucumber melon scent and I watched as he sniffed it.

"Yea, that's always been one of my favorites too," I claimed. He looked up at me then, but decided I wasn't a big interruption and went back to his perfumes.

"What do you want?" He asked. His tone was bored and I noticed he was picking up random perfume bottles not really looking at them because he was interested. He seemed tired.

"What's up with you?" I questioned. Sighing, Roxas shrugged and put the bottle down that he had in his hand.

"Anyway, you know about Olette right?" I nodded, "Well… she's… she's keeping the baby. She said that she wants to raise it because if she gives it away it might turn out like the father…"

"So… her parents know about the rape and everything then?" Roxas nodded.

"No one's mad at her. Her whole family is supporting her," he claimed. I smiled.

"Yea. She's got a real loving family," I told as I recalled the time I met her grandmother, "Well… that's good. She's not upset at all?"

"No… not that I can tell. She's turning this whole experience into the blessing it's supposed to be."

"I'm glad to hear it… She's still going to be going to school isn't she?"

"Her parents are working that out with the administration."

"Wow… I guess… it's not as bad as it seems…"

"Yea… maybe. For her… I can't… I can't… I mean. Her family is so… I can't become a part of that…" I frowned.

"Who asked you to? It's not your baby." Roxas stopped fiddling with bottles and looked at me.

"No… No it isn't. But Olette… I wanna help Olette… Only… she doesn't need me. It seems like no one does." What was this all of sudden?

"What the hell are you saying? Olette loves you! You're such a doofus. I mean, it's not like Olette's family is the average uppity affluent family. They'd love to have you support Olette. That baby's going to need a father figure anyway."

"What?? I can't be a father… Look at me!"

"You look fine to me Roxas. Just pull yourself together already! If you want to be of some use, then make yourself useful. No one likes a whiner! Man the fuck up Roxas!" Sora's cousin looked at me for a moment before smiling.

"I guess… you're right…"

"No need to guess. I am right." My comment made him laugh and then he didn't look as tired as he had before.

"Now I see why Sora likes you Kairi. You are… I dunno how to put it… nice?" I felt a sharp pain in my heart.

"… He… likes… me…" Duh! Of course! I already knew that. He'd been pretty direct in letting me know it when he kissed me. I guess I hadn't thought it possible since he was with Namine. But now I couldn't argue with the fact that he truly did because he had told his cousin. Roxas gave me a look.

"Don't tell me you didn't know. He's been liking you for a while now. For a looooooong while now." I gave him a look.

"What do you mean? He's been with Namine since middle school."

"Just because you've been with someone for a while, it doesn't mean that you love them necessarily. Some people just like the idea of having someone else by their side and some people just need someone else in order to feel better about themselves." I continued to look at him in perplexity and he sighed in exasperation.

"Okay Kairi. You didn't hear this from me. But, Sora only went with your sister in order to get closer to _you_. He's always liked _you_ Kairi but he never knew how to go about telling you. I mean, back when you guys were younger, he thought you hated his guts because you were always mean to him. Namine liked him, she was _your_ sister, so she became his link to _you_. Ya see? Personally, I think my cousin's a dumb ass. He could've said something instead of dragging this shit along, but to each his own." I stood there feeling numb for a while. Could it really be true? Had Sora always liked me? No… it couldn't be… He slept with Namine. He loved Namine right? Right?

"You're…lying," I managed to say. Roxas gave me a look.

"Why would I lie about something like that? I mean, why do you think Riku got away with sleeping with Namine behind Sora's back?"

"I… I… don't believe you…"

"Fine. Ask him yourself. Anyway, I gotta get outta here. See ya later." With a wave, Roxas turned his back on me and left. I stood by the perfume rack, trying to make sense out of my newfound information. Sora… liked me…? He's always liked… me? I gasped. Poor Namine was being used. My sister chose Sora over Riku, but Sora… chose… me? I shook my head in an attempt to get those thoughts out of my mind.

"Hey, Kairi, I'm done here. I want to go somewhere else." I nodded and proceeded to follow Rikku out of the shop.

Rikku took me into other shops that interested her and tried to get my opinions about things she wanted to buy while also talking about some of her purchases. I only half listened to her. The other half of me was preoccupied with that guy and that whole situation. I mean… all that time Riku and Namine slept together and I felt guilty for knowing about it but he was using Namine to get to me. The more I thought about it, the more confusing it got. How could he use her heart that way? He wasn't at all the guy I thought he was. The more I thought about who he wasn't, the more I thought about how lucky I was to be with Demyx. Demyx wasn't playing any games with any one. He was being straight up and he liked me. Only me.

It was noon time and Rikku and I went to meet up with the rest of the family. The Leonharts had joined my parents and I frowned when I saw Sora with Namine. How dare he?

"It's been a while Quistis. How are you doing?"

"I'm fine Rinoa. Work's been rough though…"

"Tell me about it. And then you come home and the boys are all over the place… Why are husbands so irresponsible?"

"I hope you aren't referring to me when you say that," Squall, Sora's father, stated. My mother ignored him when she said, "I don't have that problem. I've got girls remember. They are an entirely different matter."

"Anyway, where you guys headed?"

"We're going to get some food and finish taking Rikku sight seeing."

"Oh, well let us join you. I'm not done catching up." As she said this, Miss Rinoa took my mom by the arm and led her to the exit of the mall. The husbands followed after, mumbling to themselves and then Sora and Namine followed. I watched Sora angrily. As he felt my eyes on him, he turned to look at me and I tried to give him the nastiest look I could muster, which forced him to look away.

We ate at an all- you- can- eat buffet restaurant. My mother was conversing with Miss Rinoa about everything and nothing. My dad even jumped in a couple of discussions but most of the time he was eating. I wasn't really hungry and I let him eat some of the stuff on my plate.

"What's wrong with you Kairi," he asked. I shook my head.

"I had a lotta junk food over at my friend's house the other day and it hasn't really left my system yet…"

"Oh. Well. You're missing out." After that he didn't say anything else but ate. Rikku asked Sora lots of questions about Riku, which I noticed irked Namine a great deal. Well, I rather have her and Riku together then her and Sora. Sora answered friendly enough and Roxas even gave his input. Eventually, Namine interrupted and snippily asked, "What is this? The 411 on Riku or something? Talk about something else already…" Under her breath she added, "Obsessed." Rikku was quiet after that and gave Namine nasty looks throughout lunch. Sora ate like a pig and I kicked him under the table because people started looking.

"Owch!"

"Oh shut-up! I didn't even kick you that hard. You wimp."

"You shouldn't have kicked me at all. Hmph!" He kicked me back.

"Hey!" I tried to kick him back but he had moved his leg and I kicked Roxas.

"Ow! Stop being so damn childish!" He cried. He meant to kick me but he hit Rikku.

"Owies!" She kicked Namine so hard that the table jumped.

"OW!"

"Okay, that is enough children. How about all of you go get us some of that cheese cake they just put out. No fighting," my dad said. All the teenagers got up from the table and I heard Miss Rinoa say, "Wow. Kairi and Sora still go at it like that huh? You'd think they'd grow out of it after all these years…"

"Please. It's just a little unspoken attraction. You know how kids are," my mother answered, "I mean, I used to hate Rufus because he nearly pulled all my hair out with his little crush. They can't help it. It's the hormones." I laughed. Unspoken attraction? Please! When I turned the corner, someone grabbed me and forcefully pushed me up against the wall. At first I thought it was an attacker trying to abduct me, but after I stopped seeing stars, I saw that it was just Sora.

"What's your problem Kairi?"

"I don't have a problem. What's up with you Sora?"

"Nothing."

"Bullshit."

"Fine. I guess… I guess I've been a little messed up since… since…" He looked at me then and I felt butterflies in my stomach. His eyes were so striking. I was captivated by them.

"Sora. Nothing happened. We didn't do anything," I said. My comment seemed to have relieved him.

"That… that bastard! Where in the hell does he get off??" I angrily frowned.

"Where does he get off? How about the real question is, where do you get off? It's none of your business the things I do with my boyfriend. You needn't concern yourself with me."

"Kairi…"

"No, shut-up and let me talk. I know. I mean… I know that you… that you like me. And that you've been liking me for a while. And I know that you're just using Namine to get to me." Sora blushed and he backed away a little.

"Who…who told you that?"

"It doesn't matter! Now that I know it's the truth, how could you Sora? She's my sister and she loves you! How can you just play with her feelings that way!? I can't believe it. You're not at all the person I thought you were…" Sora hung his head in shame. Tears formed in my eyes. I was devastated. Part of me knew that what Roxas told me was true, but the other half didn't want to believe it. I didn't want to believe that Sora could be so heartless.

"… Kairi. Things changed. I really did start to care for Namine and… and then… You kissed me. I thought it was just a simple crush and that I'd get over it but…" He took one of my hands into his own and I snatched it back.

"Stop it! I'm tired of all these… these games Sora! I don't want to beat around the bush anymore. So tell me. Do you… do you have feelings for me?"

"Yes," his answer came quick and effortless.

"… Were you or are you still using my sister?"

"… Kinda yes and no. I told you. Things have changed. But you tell me now, do you have feelings for me Kairi?" I blushed a little and looked away from his intense gaze.

"Y…yes…" Sora paused and moved closer to me.

"If… if I… if I were to leave Namine… would you leave Demyx and… be with me?" I thought about this. We could be happy and together, but Demyx and Namine would definitely be hurt.

"…No."

"You're lying! If I told Namine I wanted to break up or she broke up with me and your and Demyx's relationship ended, are you telling me you wouldn't want to be with me?"

"How can I be with someone who used my sister like that?? I could never trust you!"

"Oh. You can't trust _me_, but you can trust _Demyx_? You don't even know him and… and… Grah!" He punched the wall beside my head and I flinched. He hated Demyx that much? But why? Sora closed what little space there was between us and whispered in my ear, "He's full of shit Kairi. You don't know him like I know him." I frowned and pushed him away.

"I know he wouldn't use me!" Sora grinned.

"Wanna bet?" I frowned and kicked him in the shin.

"No one asked you Sora! _No one asked you_! If this is who I wanna be with then I'm gonna be with him!"

"But Kairi! You should be with _me_!" We stopped talking and just stared at each other. Sora sighed.

"Every time I see you two together… it… it pisses me off! You don't know what kind of guy he is Kairi. I'm trying to protect you-''

"I didn't ask for your protection did I? You need to worry about yourself! Just because Demyx was man enough to approach me, you're jealous. You just want me for yourself and so you're just trying to break us up!"

"Listen to yourself! I know I can't force you to be with me but dammit you don't need to be with him! A guy like that is only after one thing!" I sucked in a breath and slapped him.

"And you're no different!" Sora held his offended cheek and his eyebrows furrowed in anger.

"Fine then! Screw it! You're a dumb girl Kairi and I hope you get what's coming to you!" He turned his back on me and walked away. I watched after him feeling my anger subside and sadness take its place.

"Sora!" He stopped walking and looked at me.

"Prove me wrong…," that was all I could manage to say. I didn't want our relationship to end on a bad note like that. I still wanted to believe that Sora was the sweet, caring, gentle boy I thought he was. He smiled and answered, "_I_ won't have to do a thing. Just wait and see for yourself."


	16. Chapter 8 Pt I

_**Chapter 8: Played like a Fool**_

_**Part I: Dangerous Games**_

Sora and I got back to the table a little while after everyone else and everyone gave us suspicious looks especially when they noticed how angry we were, but no one said anything. After we left the restaurant, my dad drove around the island, showing Rikku the rest of the sights. When we got back home it was late and I was worn out. I climbed the stairs to my room and fell into my bed. A few minutes later, Namine came in.

"What did you and Sora talk about?"

"Nothing. He was just worried about something that's all."

"Something like…?"

"He doesn't like Demyx."

"Oh. Okay then." As she proceeded to close the door and leave, I called out, "Namine wait!" She popped her head back in and asked, "What?" I sat up and struggled with what to say to her.

"If… if someone was potentially harmful to you… would you want me to tell you… even if it hurt you really badly?" Namine gave me a look and came back into the room.

"What do you mean?" I took a deep breath.

"… I mean… I know something about Sora…" Namine crept closer.

"What about Sora?" I started playing with the ruffles on my shirt offhandedly and answered in a small voice, "… He's using you." My sister gave me a befuddled look and shook her head.

"How so?" Ugh! What was with all her questions? Why couldn't she just believe what I told her?

"He… likes someone else and is just using you to get to that person…" Darn it! I didn't mean to be so vague. I thought that if I was upfront about it all, we could work something out, but no, I chickened out and now my sister was going to play the guessing game.

"Who is it? Tifa?"

"No…"

"Larxene?"

"Uh… no… but about Larxene…"

"What about Larxene? Kairi, what the hell is going on?" She was starting to get irritated. If I continued this discussion, she'd have my ass instead of hurting the people who really deserved it. Sighing, I shook my head.

"Forget it." She frowned angrily.

"Dammit! Why go and waste my time like that then? If you know something then spit it out you chicken shit." Wow. I did not deserve that. Frowning I said, "_Forget_ _it_. It's not important."

"Ugh!" She grabbed a pencil from off my vanity and chucked at me before she angrily stomped out of my room. Oh boy. If that was what she had in store for her actually enemies, they were in trouble. I lay back down and proceeded to close my eyes. Sleep was hard to come, and when it finally had, I just dreamt about Sora. It was weird. I kept hearing his voice repeatedly saying, "We should be together", but he was no where in sight. I could feel myself yearning to be with him and even looking all over and whenever I felt like I was getting closer, something held me back. Then one time, I felt a hand grabbing my arm. Turning around, I saw that it was Demyx. I tried to pull away but his grip was deadly.

"Lemme go Demyx!"

"No! I want you Kairi! If I can't have you then no one can!" The last thing I saw was his hand around my neck before I woke up in a cold sweat. The sun brightly glistened through the window shades and I used my arm to shield my eyes from the light. I had this strange feeling in my heart, like the dream was meant to be taken as a premonition. Shaking my head, I decided to shrug it off and got up. Careful not to wake Rikku up, I went to the bathroom and splashed water on my face. It was cold and refreshing. But it wasn't enough to erase the ominous feeling from me.

Sunday went by slowly. Everyone woke-up late and proceeded to spend the majority of the day to prepare for the rest of the week. Namine wasn't acting pissy anymore. I guessed that I just caught her at a bad time. But with an attitude like that, I decided that I shouldn't tell her anything that I know. Such information might push her over the edge and she might end up on the same boat as Paine. Anyway, Rikku spent the majority of the day talking with Riku on the phone. She laughed a lot and I noticed that she was carefree in her conversation with him. They talked about nothing and everything.

"Have you ever noticed how your second toe is bigger than all the rest?... Heeheehee. I don't think I'm strange for noticing something like that, after all, such a fact makes it hard to wear sandals and that's bad news when you live on an island. … Well, I know a couple of guys with foot fetishes so yea, they would notice my feet so take that smart alec!" I laughed a little to myself. I didn't know Riku would talk about things like that because I always thought he was too cool to. Namine listened too and she angrily looked at me. I shrugged. What did she to be angry about? She chose Sora if I remembered correctly. I continued to do my laundry, secretly listening to Rikku and Riku's conversation while enjoying Rikku's happiness.

Namine had a couple of phone calls herself from the bitch squad. She vented her frustrations to them about Rikku and Riku's apparent attraction for one another. She was so mad that her cheeks were red. I felt like I should warn her about telling Larxene but I kept my mouth closed. It's not like Larxene could do anything now. She could tell Sora about Namine and Riku's once upon a time, but it wouldn't matter because he liked me and Riku liked Rikku. I blushed. Sora…

Maybe I had overreacted. Who was Namine not to deserve a little misery? It might actually do her some good. Perhaps I was angered by the fact that I had put so much effort in trying to protect my sister and him from pain and then finding out that pain was inevitable. They just weren't a good match. Maybe me and Sora did make more sense… But… to use someone like that… Maybe he and Namine were more similar after all. How could I trust him? Would he hurt me if I gave him the chance? Given, he had hurt me already. But… but still…

I distracted myself by playing video games in the den with Rikku. We played various game titles for hours until I got bored. Then I got a phone call.

"'S for you," Namine told. She entered the den and extended the phone towards me. I took it and asked, "Hello? Who's this?"

"It is Garnet." Whoa. I had no idea she had my number.

"What's up?" I inquired. There was silence for a few moments and then she said, "This is so embarrassing seeing to how we barely know each other and all… But… Kairi can I ask you a favor?" I handed the controller to Rikku and got up from my seat.

"It depends… what is it?"

"Well… I am leaving for Daguerreo soon since school is almost out for winter break and there is not going to be anyone home to take care of my little sister Eiko…"

"You have a little sister? Seriously?"

"Yea. She was at a friend's house when you came over. She is a good kid, just a little obnoxious at times. Anyway, my mother is never at home because of her job so usually I am the one watching her. Well, since I am going to be leaving soon and my mother cannot get off work, I was wondering if you could watch her." I felt my mouth drop in shock and then I laughed. I heard an irritated grunt on the other end and calmed myself down.

"What is so funny Kairi?"

"The fact that you want me to watch your little sister. Why can't you just hire someone?"

"About that… My mother is very… how should I put this… paranoid? She does not just let anyone into the house because she is worried her rivals might try to spy on her or whatever. And all our close family is back in Alexandria. It would be foolish to buy a two-thousand dollar ticket to fly over all the way over here just to stay for two weeks."

"Whoa… well, I mean. Garnet, I… uh… emphasize with your situation but uh… I don't see what good I could be actually. I've never baby sat before and to put it frankly, I hate kids."

"Oh come on Kairi. You were a kid once yourself. Besides, she is twelve and that is hardly the age of a small child."

"Yea. That's almost the age of a damn teenager. Why can't she stay home alone again?"

"Oh God… well, you would find out anyway, but she is uh… well, Eiko is semi-retarded. She nearly drowned in a pool once and well… yea. She can function normally and think and everything but she kind of lacks common sense and all that."

"Well. Now, you realize not only have I not had any experience watching kids but I haven't even come close to a mentally disabled one before. This is a helluva thing to drop in a person's lap all the sudden. Why can't she go with you?"

"Ugh… _Kairi_! She cannot go with me because my two way ticket cost a pretty penny and there is no way my mother would spend more than necessary on another one. I mean, Kairi. She is just a kid, nothing to be scared of and not only that but you would not even be watching her that long. You will just have to spend three hours a day with her because most of the day she has to stay at a special school. … We are going to pay you of course. Nine dollars an hour Kairi. Think about that. You work three hours for a total of two weeks. That's twenty-one hours. Now multiply that by nine and you get a grand total of one-hundred and eighty-nine dollars."

"Whoa… I never had a hundred and eighty-nine dollars to myself before… That's a lot of money to be made in just two weeks… How do you know you're mother would let me since she's so paranoid?" There was a pause and I nearly thought that Garnet had hung up on me.

"Uh…Hello?"

"Do not think I am strange for this or anything, but I told her about you and she likes you. So, no, she would not mind if you watched Eiko."

"Hm. Now, when does this start?"

"The two weeks for winter break. So, are you in?"

"Hm… yeah. Yeah I guess I am. I mean, I can't deprive you of your chance to see the guy you love and all that."

"Oh thanks Kairi! You are truly a good person."

"Yeah, yeah I guess."

"Well I will give you the details tomorrow okay? Later then."

"Yeah. Okay, bye." We hung up and I tossed the phone beside me and lay down on the cough, sighing. Namine looked at me curiously.

"Who in the hell was that?"

"Garnet. Looks like I've gotta a job to do over winter break." Namine shrugged and grabbed the phone and then left the den. Rikku cried when she died.

"Man! Dang it!!"

"Ha ha! You suck!"

----

Waking up the next day, I got ready for school and waited until Demyx came to pick me up. Sora and Riku came before he did and Namine grinned.

"What's up guys?" She asked.

"Nothin'. Glad to be going back to school Namine?" Riku said. For a moment, she was taken aback by the sound of his voice. Her cheeks turned a rosy color and she answered in a little voice, "Yeah…" He smiled.

"I bet. Hey Kairi. Hey Rikku." Just like that, he'd dismissed Namine and ended their small talk. She winced and looked at her feet embarrassedly. Sora ignored the both of them. In fact, he seemed to be in his own world where he was oblivious of everyone's presence.

"Good morning Riku. Geez, it's still so weird saying my own name ya know?"

"I came first so it was my name originally."

"Whatever. It suits me better!" She screeched and climbed into the back seat of Sora's car. My sister watched her disdainfully.

"What the hell are you doing? Aren't you riding with Kairi and Demyx?" She asked coldly. Rikku gave her a look.

"No" Came her simple reply.

"Is there a problem Namine?" Riku smugly asked. My sister's blush increased and she grumbled angrily under her breath. Reluctantly, she crawled into the seat next to Rikku but tried to maintain as much distance from her as possible. I watched them unsure if I should let them all ride in the same car together.

"Are you coming Kairi?" Riku asked. I shook my head.

"I'm riding with Demyx," I answered. Sora's eyes drifted away from the road and he looked at me.

"Oh. Okay. Then I guess we're done here. Let's go," Riku said. Sora continued to watch me for a moment, not saying anything and then he took the car out of park and put it in drive and stepped on the accelerator. I watched them drive off and felt hurt, which I didn't understand since I had really just brought it on myself. I stood out in the cold a little longer, watching my breath create small puffs of air, until Demyx finally came. I entered his car, thankful for the warmth, and greeted him. He kissed me and we stayed lip to lip for a good five minutes. As we kissed, I felt uncharacteristically subconscious. When he moved his hand to my leg, I abruptly pulled back and he looked at me. I looked back at him and then laughed a little to play off my discomfort.

"Uh… we should go to school now," I said. He watched me a little longer and then he drove me to school.

It was boring at school since all the teachers had become laxed. It was the week before break and they knew that any assignments they gave out wouldn't be completed. Kids were cleaning out their lockers, throwing away things from first semester. I was with my friends cleaning out lockers and we had a competition to see who had the cleanest locker. The winner got two dollars from each of the participants. Rikku wasn't included because she hadn't been there long enough to trash her locker. Olette was the first one out. Her locker was junky with sports stuff. Fujin's locker was less messy then Olette's but more messier than Selphie's whose locker was jacked up more than mine was. Just when I thought I won, Garnet decided she wanted to play. She had come to give me the details about the babysitting. I thought, "Fine. More money for me." I was foolish. If only I had recalled how neat her room was… When Garnet opened her locker, it was like seeing the Garden of Eden or something. We all looked inside and became dumbstruck.

"What the hell is this? This ain't no locker," Fujin claimed. Garnet laughed.

"Sorry to disappoint you but it is actually. And I believe that makes me the winner. Pay up." Without protest, we each handed her two dollars. She grinned and pocketed the money.

"Much obliged. See ya." She walked away. We all exchanged looks.

"What the hell? Being that clean ain't natural," Fujin said.

"I agree…," Olette stated. I nodded my head in agreement with my friends.

At lunch we talked about possible baby names for Olette's future kid. She had some picked out already but took any she liked from the suggestions we made. After that, we talked about what we were gonna do over vacation.

"Working," I said.

"I'm going to Twilight Town to visit some of my relatives and spend the holidays," Olette told.

"I'm gonna be busy with practice. The tournaments are over break and the Blitzball Team wants me in shape for them," Rikku interjected.

"I still can't believe you're joining…," I muttered.

"Oh leave her alone Kairi. Just because you can't play…," Selphie teased. I pinched her.

"What are you doing then?"

"Uh… you know what I'm doing Kairi. The same thing I do every year. Go to Treno for Christmas and then spend New Years at Traverse Town. Now, those two cities are off the chain during the holiday seasons," my best friend said.

"Oooh. We might see you on TV during the count down!" Olette cried excitedly. I rolled my eyes and looked at Fujin.

"What are you gonna be doing Fujin?" She sighed.

"…I'm… I'd rather not say…" With that, she dropped the discussion and opted for a change of subject.

"Since this will be the last week we see each other, I suggest we have a party. Only us of course…"

"But the Blitzball Team is gonna have a party this weekend to celebrate them winning the districts this year," Rikku explained. Fujin sighed.

"Well, whatever then. I guess that'll have to do. Where is it gonna be at?"

"Demyx wants to have it on the little island. It's gonna be a beach party." Rikku answered.

"In December??" Fujin exclaimed.

"It's not cold on the smaller island. You know it's always hot over there. I guess that's cool. Who's all going besides us now?" Olette said. Rikku thought about it.

"I guess anyone the team invites." They all started talking about what bathing suits to wear. Rikku explained that she needed to buy a new one. I couldn't gather enough enthusiasm to take part in the discussion because I didn't like the idea of a beach party. They weren't uncommon and yea, I didn't like parties in general, but this one was different. My boyfriend had decided to throw it. I was expected to show up and showing up meant that I would have to be half dressed. Remembering the time Demyx kissed me against my will, I recalled how he wanted to take me swimming. I couldn't believe it. I didn't plan on ever going with him to some place where I'd be half naked. I remembered that I was vehemently against the idea at the time. What had changed? I still didn't trust him to behave himself while I flaunted my stuff on the beach. He couldn't even handle himself when we were alone in a room.

Perhaps I didn't think about it enough when I decided to be his girlfriend. Why was I just now second guessing the decision? I always knew what kind of person he was. Maybe it was the dream. No matter how hard I tried to ignore it, the foreboding feeling in my gut wouldn't leave. I decided to be his girlfriend because he was there for me when I felt like the whole world was against me. Had he used my fragile situation to his advantage?

"_I feel so strongly about you Kairi… You're the only one I want…" _What he told me Wednesday replayed in my mind. He seemed so sincere… Maybe… Maybe I had it all wrong…

"Kairi? Kairi are you in there?" I snapped back and looked at Selphie who was waving her hand in my face. I looked around at everyone else and noticed they were all watching me with curious gazes. I sheepishly grinned.

"S… sorry. I was thinkin' about something…"

"You want to share it with the rest of us?" Fujin asked. I shook my head.

"It's nothing really. I was deciding which bikini to wear," I lied. They exchanged looks before continuing their discussion. This time I joined in. I pushed the auspicious feeling away and chatted.

The week went by fast and pleasantly. I had no more surprises and no more guilt trips. Everything seemed at peace although my relationship with Sora was nearly nonexistent and the closer I got to Demyx the deeper that crap feeling in my gut got. Whenever he took me into his arms or kissed me Sora's words rang in my mind, _"He's full of shit. You don't know him the way I do." _It was foolish to fight such a battle with my conscience, so I didn't try. I just continued to play like everything was alright.


	17. Chapter 8 Pt II

_**Chapter 8: Played like a Fool**_

_**Part II: No Pain, No Gain**_

When the day finally came to go to the beach, I made sure that I wasn't dressed my best. I intentionally wore baggy shorts over my bikini bottoms and a loose tank top over my top. I done my hair up in a messy bun and wore a worn pair of flip flops. Namine wore a white one piece but it was low-cut and the sides were out. It tied around her neck. My sis looked nice. Rikku wore a skimpy bikini. The bottoms were tiny and the top was like a strapless bra. They looked at me with disapproving faces when I joined them at the front door.

"Kairi, we're going to the beach you know," Namine said slowly.

"I know. My swim suit is underneath," I replied. They looked at me a little longer before they left through the front door.

We all decided that we'd take three cars to the beach. Since Tifa, Larxene, Tidus, Axel, and Fujin lived on the other side of the island they'd take Larxene's car. Namine, Rikku, Olette, Selphie, and me were going to ride with Riku because Sora had to pick up Demyx, Roxas, Seifer, Zell, and Wakka. I rode quietly and distracted myself by watching the passing scenery through my window. Rikku and Riku were having a little talk and Namine tried to ignore them but failed miserably. Olette fell asleep and Selphie was reading a magazine.

It took a good hour to make it to the docks where we had to rent three boats to get over to the other island. At this point everyone decided to choose who they'd ride with. Olette, Fujin, Selphie, Rikku, and I decided to ride in one boat. Namine, Larxene, Tifa, Sora, and Riku rode in another. The last boat held all the rest. Everyone was excited after about twenty minutes of paddling because the island's coast was in sight. As soon as we hit land, everyone went crazy and jumped onto the sand creating massive pandemonium. I took my time and walked leisurely. The beach wasn't as crowded as it was normally and the resort was closed for renovations so there wasn't anything besides us. A couple of vendors had set up shop though.

We set up our beach towels and umbrellas a little ways away from the tide. The boys started to set up a volley ball net as the girls proceeded to lather themselves with sunscreen. Like moths to the flame, the boys disregarded their work in favor of crowding around to watch. I didn't bother to put on any sunscreen, instead I pulled on my shades and laid on my back letting my umbrella shade me from the sun's harmful UV rays. I started to close my eyes in content when a shadow cast itself over me. I looked up and saw Demyx staring down at me.

"Aren't you gonna put on any sunscreen?" He asked. I blushed and sat up.

"Uh… no. I wasn't planning to actually…," I said slowly. He didn't seem to notice my tenseness and instead he sat down beside me.

"Need some help putting it on?" I rolled my eyes.

"Didn't you hear me? I said I wasn't going to wear any."

"Yeah right and risk getting sun burnt? Stop being so modest Kairi. Here, I'll help." Before I could protest, he had skillfully removed my tank top to expose my yellow bikini top. Throwing it aside, he pulled the shorts off next and revealed my panty-like bottoms. I felt extremely self conscious as he proceeded to rub lotion on my back. His hand was warm and it moved slowly. His face was full of concentration and I blushed embarrassedly when I saw that everyone started to watch us. His hand moved to the front and he applied a generous amount on my collar bone and around my exposed cleavage where his hand seemed to stall for a moment.

"Uh… Demyx… I can take it from here…," I murmured. He didn't seem to hear me because he was entranced by my breasts so I tapped him on the shoulder. He jumped from surprise and looked at me as though he was winded.

"Huh?"

"I said I got it. Thanks." I took the bottle of lotion from him and started to rub some on my arms. He lingered a moment seemingly trying to comprehend what was happening. After he got his bearings straight, he got up, saw that everyone had been watching, and said, "What are you people doing just standing around? This is supposed to be a party!" That got everyone back to doing what they had been doing before. Demyx left to help the rest of the team put up the net. I watched him feeling a little uneasy. I finished applying the sunscreen and then I gathered my discarded clothing. I wanted to cover myself back up and disappear.

"Hey Kairi." I looked up and saw Larxene smiling down at me. Ugh.

"What's up?"

"Nothing really. Those moronic jocks over there want to have a volley ball tournament and they sent me over to ask if you wanted to play. So, do you want to play?" I looked over at my friends. They were talking trash and I distinctly made out Wakka's voice saying, "Yeeaah, it's pay back time for crashing our practice that one time. Prepared to get OWNED!" I laughed but then I noticed Demyx looking at me expectantly and I shook my head.

"No… I'm fine here." Larxene gave me a look. I looked back at her.

"What?"

"… You're still socially retarded even though you've been welcomed to the popular crowd with open arms," she stated bluntly. My mouth opened, but I didn't say anything. Instead, I hugged my legs to myself and rested my chin on my knees. I shrugged.

"Just because I start to hang out with a couple of kids… it doesn't make me any different Larxene. I'm still me… just… noticed…" She lingered a moment longer.

"Yea, but I've seen you lately. You haven't been like this since Seifer's party."

"Whatever. Why pay that much attention to me anyway? Were you scheming something or what?" Larxene backed away absent mindedly and I looked at her meaningfully. She knew what I was getting at. Huffing angrily, she kicked sand at me and stalked away. I watched as she joined Namine's team.

Rikku, Riku, Zell, and Axel were on a team. Sora, Namine, Larxene, and Tifa were on a team. Demyx, Wakka, Tidus and Selphie were on a team. And Olette, Fujin, Roxas, and Seifer were on a team. I grinned. At least without me in the picture the teams broke even.

The first teams to play against each other were Rikku's and Olette's teams. They played a fierce game because Olette and Rikku were very competitive females. At first the whole team had been involved but after they matched up in scores, Olette and Rikku just used their teammates to play the way they needed to in order to win. I wasn't surprised when they tied. For a tie breaker, they had to do paper, rock, scissors, which turned into a competition in itself. For every one missed, they asked for the benefit of the doubt.

"Best two outta three?"

"Best three outta four?" So on and so forth. The girls had to be put in check so they let Roxas and Riku go at it. Of course Roxas lost. Olette was furious but she didn't fly off on a handle. Like a good sportsman, she gave him words of encouragement.

The next teams up against each other were Sora's and Demyx's. I could see from where I sat the fierce competitive force the two had against each other. I thought it was weird. They played on the same team for Pete's sake. Maybe… I didn't want to sound vain but… perhaps it was something to do with me.

The game started off the way Olette and Rikku's game had. Everyone was having fun and then all a sudden it got serious. It happened after Demyx spiked the ball right at Sora who missed it. Sora was angered and he got Demyx back by hitting the ball at him so hard that Demyx couldn't get it back up in time and it dropped. The score tied and it was plain to see that the two boys were playing to win. With every score made by Demyx, Sora scored two more. It was intense and when I thought it would take forever to reach twenty-five, Sora spiked it and it hit Demyx in the head, which caused Sora's team to get that last point.

"Foul! That's a damn _foul_!" Demyx exclaimed. After exchanging high fives with the girls on his team to celebrate their victory, Sora looked at him angrily.

"What the hell are you bitching about?" He asked. His voice was controlled but his face was scrunched up in an angry scowl. Demyx went up to the net and got in Sora's face.

"You know that shit doesn't count! It hit me in the head! You don't get points for that!"

"The hell I don't! It's in!"

"No the hell it isn't! I want a redo!" Sora sighed.

"Fine. I don't see what difference it makes…," he said. Getting back in their positions, Sora was handed the ball and he served. The ball hit Demyx in the head again.

"That's it you little bitch!" He yelled. He rushed at Sora and Sora rushed back at him. Sora socked him in the eye and Demyx tackled him into the sand where they proceeded to wrestle. Everyone watched in awe and then the rest of the boys tried to pull them off each other. I laughed to myself. It was just a game…

After the fight, the volley ball tournament was cancelled and Namine suggested they all do something less competitive and more friend oriented. She suggested chicken.

"Riku, wanna be my partner?" She asked. Everyone looked shocked by her question. Riku smiled coyly and wrapped an arm around Rikku.

"No thanks. Rikku's my partner." Rikku blushed shyly, and Namine glared at the both of them.

"Sora?" Sora was wiping blood away from his lip and he shook his head.

"What the hell??"

"I'll be your partner," Axel stated. Namine looked at him with distaste and cried, "Forget it! Shit!"

Larxene suggested that everyone play truth or dare. No one had any problems with that and my friends forced me to participate. The feeling in my stomach worsened and I tried to avoid eye contact with Sora and Demyx.

"Okay, anyway. Who goes first?" Rikku raised her hand excitedly.

"Alright. Rikku, truth, or dare," Larxene asked.

"Dare!" Larxene smiled evilly and said, "I dare you… to make out with Zell." Namine smiled and exchanged a five with her friend. Rikku's upper lip curled and Zell blushed shyly. After a few minutes of nothing, Rikku finally pulled the boy close to herself and kissed him. Everyone gasped and whooped. I covered my eyes finding that I was embarrassed for her. When they finally finished, Rikku's face was red and so was Zell's.

"Who…Who's next?" Rikku asked. Riku raised his hand.

"Uh… truth or dare?" Rikku questioned.

"After that I'd have to be stupid not to choose… truth." Rikku grinned a little and asked, "Okay. Tell the truth. Do you like me?" Everyone's gaze shifted to Riku who sat nonchalantly, arms crossed.

"Uh… yea. Yeah I do actually," he answered.

"Whoa!"

"What the hell?"

"What kind of game is this?"

"Oh shit! Rikku and _Riku_? That's funny!"

"Awwe! Adorable." And so were the comments made by my fellow teens. Namine and Larxene both exchanged incredulous looks and Namine growled. After everyone settled down Riku asked, "Who's next?" Namine's and Selphie's hands went up. Riku looked like he was carefully debating between the two and said after much deliberation, "Uh… Selphie. Truth or dare?"

"Dare! And I better not have to do anything perverted."

"Now come on. Where's the fun in that?" Tidus remarked. Riku laughed and said, "Fine, I dare you to tell everyone what happened to you and Tidus the weekend before last." Selphie and Tidus faces turned a deep red color.

"Uh…"

"You don't have to do it Selphie!" Tidus cried. She ignored him and covering her face with her hands she said, "We… got drunk… and… after we fell asleep… someone stripped us of our clothes and… when we woke up… we thought… that we had done it…"

"Hahahahahaha! That's dirty! Who'd do such a thing?" Axel interjected.

"It was you, you ass hole and that shit was _not_ funny! She thought she was preggers you moron!" Tidus cried. Everyone laughed, even Tidus and Selphie. I failed to see the humor in it. That could have really messed my friend up.

"Anyway… who's next?" I couldn't believe the game was still going. Sora, Demyx, and Wakka raised their hands. Selphie looked around at all of them and said, "Truth or dare Sora?" My heart beat rapidly. I looked at Selphie and saw that she had a mischievous glint in her eyes. She glanced at me, grinned, and then turned her attention back to Sora who said, "Dare."

"I dare you… to… uh… give Kairi… I dare you to French Kairi!" Everyone broke out in hysterics. Namine looked at Selphie and cried, "What the hell kind of dare is that!? Change it right now!" Sora looked at me. I felt my chest tighten. He came over to me and our peers "oohed" and "ahhed" in obvious anticipation about what was going to transpire between us. I studied him and could tell he was enjoying it. I couldn't help but grin subconsciously. Everyone whooped and hollered like a group of maniacs as they watched us. I blushed a little and tried to not let my feelings get the best of me as he pulled me closer. He put a finger under my chin and forced my head upward to meet his lips that gently grazed mine. I couldn't believe that he was actually going through with this even though Namine and Demyx weren't sitting two feet from us. What was worse, I couldn't believe that I was allowing it. Why was I allowing it? He was wrong. So wrong and… He nibbled on my bottom lip temptingly. I didn't notice how close our bodies were until I felt his rock hard abs against my stomach. His skin was rough, yet smooth and I sighed. He kissed my lip gently and then he parted my mouth with his tongue and proceeded to French me mercilessly. I couldn't think. My mind was all jumbled up. Nothing else mattered but him.

People gasped, others swooned, and some started chanting, "So-ra! So-ra!" After seductively licking and sucking on my lip, he was finally done. He pecked me gently on the lips before hesitantly pulling away from me. My lips throbbed deliciously from Sora's mercilessly rough kiss and I touched them with the tip of my index finger. I was in awe. We looked at each other, but before we spoke, all his friends jumped him, ruffling his hair and giving him hell. Namine looked at me with a strange expression on her face and Demyx watched us with fury in his eyes.

"Okay. Okay that's _enough_ dammit!" Everyone looked at Demyx and he looked at his hands, embarrassed to have lashed out that way.

"Uh… I'm hungry…," he mumbled lamely.

"Yea me too. This game takes a lot outta ya," Sora agreed mockingly. They glared at each other, but Olette interrupted and said, "I'm hungry too!"

"We better get this soon- to- be mother some food before she starts eating _us_," Roxas stated, "We'll continue this after lunch." Everyone agreed and then we settled to eat lunch. I wasn't really hungry, but Olette ate my share of the food we packed. She was really wolfin' it down like she hadn't eaten anything in ages. Roxas watched her awestricken and Fujin shook her head disapprovingly. I didn't notice Demyx sneak up on me, but he sat down beside me and cuddled me into his strong embrace. The hair on my neck stood on end when he whispered in my ear, "Come with me real quick. I wanna show you something…" My friends watched us with interest. His voice was odd. It almost seemed… like it was devoid of emotion. I was scared to meet his gaze so I didn't, but I nodded in compliance. Not too gently, Demyx pulled me up by the arm and guided me away from the picnic and my friends.

I noticed right away that he had led me a great distance from my friends. My palm was sweaty in his hand, but he didn't let go. When we came to the other side of the island Demyx stopped walking and so did I. He didn't say anything but turned around to meet my gaze, which I reluctantly kept.

"…Close your eyes," he ordered softly. I gave him a look.

"Trust me Kairi," he said and I did. He grabbed both of my hands and began leading me in another direction. The further we went, the louder the sound of rushing water became. I felt a little nervous. Why would he take me to where some rapidly flowing water was? I felt him stop and by instinct I did as well.

"You can open 'em now," he stated. I waited then I opened my right eye then the left. What I saw was breath taking. A waterfall and lush vegetation surrounding it. I swooned happily and went closer to it. It was very aesthetic and I reached out a hand to touch the cool water. A nice sensation crawled up my spine and I looked at Demyx who was watching me with a smile on his face.

"It's beautiful," I claimed. Demyx nodded.

"And the good thing about it is that I think I'm the only one that knows this place exists."

"Lucky us then!" He chuckled. We were silent and the musical sound of the water fall filled the emptiness. Demyx's face took a melancholic look and I knew why he looked that way. I reached over and cupped my hand on his cheek. He blushed and turned his face from me.

"Demyx… it didn't mean anything… that kiss between me and Sora…" I felt him tense at the sound of my words and slowly, very slowly, he looked at me from the corner of his eye. I felt a sharp pain hit my stomach and I sighed.

"It was just a stupid dare…," I mumbled.

"… Then why'd you let him do it Kairi?" His voice was harsh and it made me flinch slightly. I took my hand away from his face and it lay at my side. Why _had_ I let him do it? Why had I let him kiss me at all? It was wrong… wasn't it? He was my sister's boyfriend for cryin' out loud! But… even though… I mean… despite that…

"It's because you still care about him. No matter how much you try to deny yourself. I mean, you can't just turn those feelings off Kairi. You can't help who you love and that's one of the really irritating things about it," Demyx said. I could hear the raw emotion as he spoke each word.

"But…"

"Take it from someone who knows. I mean… I know that you care about this other guy but I still… I still…" He couldn't finish his sentence and I saw that he was overcome with his emotions as he walked passed me to observe the waterfall. His back was to me and I just stared at the back of his head. I felt bad. He really did care about me. He still cared even though… I gulped and went to him. I touched his shoulder, but he didn't seem to realize it.

"…I… I care about you too Demyx. I do… that's why… this is so hard. But regardless of my feelings for Sora, I always chose you in the end…" He looked at me. His eyes full of hope.

"Kairi…"

"And… that's why I guess I wanna make this work because… I know Sora and I probably never will…" Without warning he grabbed my wrist and pulled me closer to him. I felt my heart rate increase.

"Wha…?"

"I don't want to be your second choice Kairi! If you really want to be with me then _be_ with me! If you really care, then give me something that Sora hasn't touched… something he can't have…" His grip lessened on my wrist and I looked into his eyes.

"Demyx…"

"Give me… your soul," he finished. I felt my face scrunch up in confusion. He ignored it and pulled me closer.

"Sora can have your heart, your love, but I want your body Kairi. I want to be with you the way no other guy has been with you. If you truly care about me the way you claim, then you owe me this." I could feel my cheeks heat up when I figured out what he was talking about. He wanted my body so that he could have my soul, the only thing that Sora hadn't touched. He wanted us to become one… I pushed him away and covered my mouth. He wanted to sleep with me! He was forcing me to sleep with him in order to prove that I cared about him. I did care about him right? I looked at him and he had that same look on his face that he had the night we had almost… Wait. If I was willing to do it then, then why not now? Besides, Sora didn't love my sister, and yet they slept together. Was sex and love really interconnected or could you really have one without the other?

I knew this was above my head and clearly out of my understanding so I settled for wanting to do the right thing. And after all the pain that I had put Demyx through, I rationalized that he deserved what he was asking for. At least… I didn't think he was asking for much anyway… My cheeks burned more as I became even more frazzled with my inner debate. Demyx stepped to me and placed his hands on my shoulders. I looked up into his eyes and he looked back into mine for a split second before kissing me softly on the lips. I still wasn't sure about sleeping with him, but I let him lay me down in the lush grass where he began to assault my upper body with continuous hot kisses. His hands roamed my body hungrily and I felt myself grow hot. He nibbled at my neck then bit it. It burned and I gasped but he licked and kissed it to sooth the slight pain he'd caused. He used his body to part my legs and then he lifted my legs around his waist with his hands. Trailing them up my thigh, he groped my butt and then put the tips of his fingers underneath my bikini bottoms.

I felt overwhelmed. I didn't know. I didn't know what was right or wrong anymore. The pleasurable sensations filling my body with his every caress didn't even seem right. Sure I liked _how_ he was touching me and kissing me… but I didn't like _why_ he was touching me. I didn't like him on top of me. I didn't like what he was doing. I tried to think of something else as he slowly slipped the bottoms off. My mind wandered aimlessly and then I remembered Sora. I remembered every time he kissed me or fondled me. I liked the way he touched me and how he touched me. It felt right… even though politically speaking it had been so wrong. Just the thought of him caused my heart to flutter and I closed my eyes. When I opened them I thought I saw a mass of brown, spiky hair in the bushes. As though spotting my eyes on it, I saw it make its way out of the overgrowth and then outta sight. My eyes widened.

"Sora??" I cried. I didn't notice Demyx look at me. Realizing my mistake, I flushed with embarrassment and looked at my boyfriend who was now getting up from on top of me. He seemed pissed, but he remained calm as he pulled his swim trunks back on. I was confused for a moment before realizing that the sex wasn't happening and then I reached for my bottoms and put them on as I stood up. Neither of us spoke.

"…So. He even has this too huh?" Demyx said bitterly. I rubbed my arm, unsure of how to respond.

"I kinda always knew I'd never have you, but… I still felt the need to try at least. Now I see that I was foolish for even thinking that! Its obvious Kairi… who you've chosen. You don't want me…"

"… I'm sorry…"

"I don't want your pity!" He spat.

"… What do we do now?"

"Now? Now I'm going back to the party… as a single guy." I looked at him then.

"You mean…"

"Kairi! I really don't see why you're so surprised! I can't take Sora's place! Nor will I be used as a substitute in order to do so. Anyway, it's over," he said huffily. Glaring at me one last time, I nearly fell over when he pushed pass me and stomped away back towards the way we came. My heart hurt and I stood there dumbfounded.

When I finally went back to the party, everyone was playing truth and dare again. Everyone was there except Sora. I felt my cheeks burn. Had he really been there? I thought what I saw was just a figment of my imagination spurred on by the extreme stress that I had put on my mind when I was trying to get a grasp on what was happening. I didn't join the game but instead sat on my beach towel and thought to myself.

I was so immersed in my thoughts that I didn't realize that I'd fallen asleep. My sister was the first person I saw when I woke-up. Yawning, I sat up and stretched.

"What's up Namine?" I asked as I rubbed the sand from my eyes. I was too drowsy to notice the tears glistening in my sister's eyes.

"It's time to go…," she said. Her voice cracked and I looked at her. She wouldn't meet my curious gaze but turned her back on me. I gathered up all of my things and followed Namine back to the boats we used to get over. It was quiet and I saw that her shoulders were squared with tension.

"Ne'? What's the matter?" I asked. She stopped walking and looked at me. She just stared at me for a few moments with her tear stained, blue eyes. She opened her mouth as though she was about to speak but then closed it again when no sound came out. I watched her, suddenly very frantic.

"Namine?? What is it? Did someone hurt you?? What happened??" I asked. I dropped my large bag which held my things and took my sister by the shoulders. She could only look at her feet. I saw crystalline tears drip down into the sand below her.

"…You're the girl… aren't you Kairi…," she whispered. I had to strain my ears to hear what she said. But even after realizing what she said, I didn't understand it.

"What are you talking about?"

"…The one that Sora really cares about… the one he was using me to get to… is you…isn't it?" She said a little more loudly. I felt myself blush. She raised her head and looked me in the eyes. Her jaw was squared and her face emotionless. It was as though she was preparing herself for some big disappointing news. I didn't know what to do. I was caught.

"Namine… it… he… No."

"Don't lie to me Kairi…" I ground my teeth together and inhaled a large breath.

"… Yes. I am…"


	18. Chapter 9 Pt I

**_A/N:!!BEFORE YOU READ!! _**I have a feeling everyone is going to thoroughly enjoy this chapter. I mean, really. Think of it as a thanks for reaching 100 reviews. But I don't want no younguns reading the last part of the chapter because it's graphic and I don't want to be the reason they ask their parents about sex. Anyway, enjoy. **_UPDATED: _**In case no one has noticed, I have been revising Mine: Body and Soul and have even renamed it. The revisions have been subtle and you might not notice any change, but this chapter has had some MAJOR changes. Before it wasn't as explicit as some might have wanted but now I think I have outdone myself! Lol. But besides that, the revision in this chapter has a major effect on the plot so disregard the three chapters that appear after this one until they have been revised. Thanks and the aforementioned warning is still in effect.

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**_Chapter 9: Everyone Gets Their Just Desserts_**

_**Part I: Yours and Mine Are One **_

Namine didn't talk to me at all once we got back home. She didn't talk to me during the trip home either. Not one word. I didn't know what I really expected after telling her. Did I honestly think she'd understand? Sora was her boyfriend and had been for six years. Six whole years together only to for her to find out that during those six years, her man was secretly yearning for another, her own sister.

Of course, she was only faithful for three of those years with the probability of less than that. I didn't really know when she had started messing around with Riku on the side, but the simple fact that she had been messing around at all had to be taken into account. She was just as awful as Sora was. Still, I didn't want my sister hating me. I hoped she'd realize that none of this was my fault.

The next day, we still weren't talking and I noticed that Namine's once infamous spunk was now diminished as she sat at the table, seemingly engrossed in the newspaper. Her blue eyes traveled back and forth as she read the information, but the lack of the spirit that once made her eyes twinkle made me think that she wasn't really reading for comprehension or even enjoyment. It seemed like she was just trying to appear busy.

"So, what are you guys going to be doing over the break?" My father asked. He was situated between my sister and me. When we didn't answer right away, he rolled his eyes and directed his gaze to Rikku.

"Rikku? What are you going to be doing? Do you need us to buy you ticket to get back to Al Bhed?" Rikku shook her head.

"My dad sent me a letter the other day. He doesn't want me to come visit with him. He thinks it'll kill my vigor for the holiday season… But, I am planning a surprise for him! Can you help me with that Mr. Rufus?"

"Of course, why not? Is that all?"

"No. I'll be practicing with the Blitzball Team at school since I just joined the team and we're going to enter the tournaments." My dad's face lit up and he leaned across the table nearer to her.

"You don't say! I never took you for the sporty type Rikku! And the tournaments? Wow. Looks like that team is finally starting to shape up. Do you think you guys can make it to nationals?"

"Let's not get our hopes up too high dad," I interrupted. Both he and Rikku gave me grim looks.

"Well, now that I've got you talking, what are you going to be doing? I'm not letting you or Namine just sit around the house." I rolled my eyes. Since when was he or my mother even interested in the things Namine and I did? Some shit happens and they think that now's the time to step up their game huh? Bullshit.

"I've got a job," that was the only thing I felt like disclosing to him. He continued his scrutinizing glare as though beckoning me to continue. I shrugged.

"Kairi, what is this job exactly?" My mother asked. I stuffed my mouth full of toast.

"Mm mamy itting mor my mend!" I claimed with a mouth full of food. My parents looked disgusted.

"That's nice honey. What about you Namine? Or will you just be spending time with Sora? Huh?" My dad elbowed her and raised his eye brows suggestively. My sister smiled sweetly and said, "…We broke up." I felt my jaw detach itself so far from my face that my bottom lip hit the table. Of course I was only exaggerating, but I was shocked as much. When did that happen? My parents exchanged looks.

"Uh… really? When did this happen?" My mother inquired, voicing the question that seemed to be plaguing everyone's minds. I waited to hear Namine's answer.

"Yesterday," was her one word reply. I looked at Rikku who looked at me and shrugged her shoulders. My mother laid a delicate hand on Namine's shoulder and asked, "Are you alright? I know how close you two were." Namine's eyes shone and I saw tears leak from the corner of her eyes.

"We weren't really close at all…," she breathed. Rising from her seat, and still refusing to look at me she said, "Excuse me. I'm going to my room now…" And she left, walking with a slight haunch in her back and her head down cast. I never saw her so down before.

"Oh Rufus…"

"I know. Maybe I'll talk to Sora about it. I mean, all these years and now that I'm just starting to accept them as a couple, he does _this_! What's the matter with that kid?" What was the matter with us all?

I knew I couldn't let things with my sister stay the way they were. We needed compromise. So, I knocked on her door and waited.

"Who is it?" Her voice was small and I inhaled before answering.

"It's me. Can I talk with you?" No answer.

"Ne'. It's me, your sister. Please. We need to talk. Open the door," I said. After a few unbearable minutes of anxiety, I heard the lock on Namine's door click and she opened the door. She stood in the doorway with a phlegmatic expression written in her facial features before moving aside, inviting me into her room. I obliged and entered with my head hung. She closed the door behind me and went over to her computer to continue typing out a message she had written. I glanced at the screen and saw that she was IMing someone known as XhEaRt09. I wanted to see what they were talking about but she typed something really fast and minimized the window.

"What is it Kairi? What is it that we have to talk about?" Her voice wasn't soft, or even harsh. It was… plain. No emotion whatsoever could be indicated so I didn't really know how to respond to her. I took a seat on her bed and calmed my nerves by moving my hands together.

"What do you mean? I mean… since when are you and Sora broken up?" I stated with a slight chuckle. Even the sound of it was unbelievable and stupid.

"Since I found out that he likes you Kairi. After I figured it out, things started making more sense."

"Things like what exactly?" There was silence as she contemplated my question.

"You don't know about this stuff, but… Sora and I… well. He was always worried about you more than me Kairi. Like the time Hayner beat you up. It was Sora who had arranged for the team to watch over you the next day. It wasn't me." My eyes widened.

"Ruh…really?" She nodded in answer to my question.

"Yea… And that's not the only time he was worried for your safety either." I knew that. Now that I remembered, he had chosen to stay with me that night Namine and I got into a little spout. And now with Demyx…

"Plus… Sora… Me and Sora never did it Kairi. I know everyone thinks we have and I've led everyone to believe that we have but we haven't. Every time we got ready to, he would stop at the last minute. He'd say something like, 'Let's wait until this is really right.' I never knew what he meant because it felt right to me because I cared about him so much ya know. Now I see he just didn't want to sleep with me because he didn't feel the same way. Man, thinking about our relationship now, I see that all he was to me was a great catch. A nice, good looking guy. Maybe that's why I fooled around with Riku because I didn't feel obligated to like him but I actually loved him…"

"Namine…"

"I'm just sorry I hadn't realized it sooner, the way he feels about you… It's so obvious really. So obvious…," she stated more so to herself than me, "Anyway, after I figured it out when he kissed you… Really, if you saw the chemistry between the both of you, you'd figure it out too Kairi… but after he kissed you and I figured it out… I got the clarity from you and I did what I had to do. I called him and said that we needed to break up."

"…What did he say?" I asked timidly. I didn't want to cause her anymore hurt than necessary by asking, but I was extremely curious. Namine gathered herself together and replied, "He asked me why and I told him that I knew the truth about why he was dating me. He didn't deny it either…"

"Namine… I'm sorry," he said.

"Sora… If you want to know the truth… I really don't care about you either…"

"What? What do you mean? Just because I love someone else doesn't mean I don't care about you Namine."

"… Well… I love Riku and since freshman year… we've been sleeping together behind your back… I'm sorry Sora."

"…I guess… I guess this is for the best then. Good-bye Namine." I became livid with my sister's recap of their conversation. I couldn't believe that she had confessed to sleeping with Riku! To Sora! I had to admit though, I was proud of her. Honestly, I didn't want Sora to die thinking that Namine was someone she wasn't. That wasn't right. But she told him. She actually told him.

"Namine! Are you alright?" She shrugged passively.

"It's alright. But… I am going to miss him. I hope he makes you as happy as he made me."

"You… you… think Sora and I will… get together?" I asked, my heart aflutter with the mere thought of it. My sister huffed irately and went to her closet where she began to rake through the different clothing hanging there.

"Duh you twit! Why wouldn't you guys get together? He loves you and I don't care what you say Kairi, you love him too. Why else had you involved yourself so closely into our affairs? Besides, you had better get with him. I really liked Sora… and since I care about his happiness, I'll let him go and do what makes him happy… which unfortunately means being with my little sister." I chuckled a little. At least she was getting back to her normal self. The pain was still evident in her voice though. I lay on her bed and stared at her ceiling. I couldn't believe it. I mean, I was happy. Really happy and Sora and I weren't even a couple yet! Yet… ? Wait. I hadn't seen him since yesterday. We hadn't been on good terms after we left the party. He saw me and Demyx afterall. … He saw me and Demyx! I jumped up, feeling anxiety wash over be like a wave of water. I knew Sora was hurt because of Namine so I knew that the pain I caused him was like a festering wound. Namine looked at me curiously.

"What's the matter with you? Got diarrhea or something?" I shook my head furiously.

"Sora… he doesn't know that Demyx and I have broken up…"

"Oh yea… that's right. You were dating that womanizer. I was surprised you gave him the time of day actually. All he likes to do is pick up girls that seemingly have no interest in him and then fuck 'em. After that he just tosses them aside and brags about it. He's quite the loser actually." I gaped at my sister.

"You knew this and you didn't tell me??"

"Hey. You have to learn some things on your own Kairi. I can't keep protecting you forever… I did warn that little bitch that if he tried to pull that shit on you then he'd have nothing but a shaft at his disposal," she claimed with a wink. I smiled.

"Thanks…"

"No problem. You're my little sister after all… But… I should warn you. I told Larxene that I broke up with Sora and we both know how much she likes him… So she might jump at the chance if she hasn't already."

"…You knew about Larxene too?" I asked. My sister nodded.

"She's my best friend after all. I know everything about her."

"With a friend like that who needs enemies?"

"I know you don't get her but she's a good friend… in her own way…" I scrunched my face in disapproval. Yea right she was a good friend. Namine's standards were too low. Anyway, I left, but not before giving my sister a giant hug.

I put on one of the cuter outfits I owned and brushed my hair. I was thinking that I would add a little curl in my hair and then decided against when I realized I didn't need to get all dolled up. Sora liked me for me.

I told my parents that I was leaving and walked out. It was a cold day, and I pulled the collar of my jacket up to block the biting wind that was blowing on me. I looked up at the gray sky and saw that the sun looked like a silver pearl blending in with its white surrounding. I hated overcast because I felt smothered. Like I was trapped or something. But even the sky couldn't ruin this day because now… Sora and I could finally be together.

I struggled with what to say to him when I saw him. First off, I'd have to apologize for being an idiot. He didn't meant to hurt anyone, he was only doing what he thought was right. That was understandable. He even told me that such a trait was hard to find in someone nowadays. I guess it was even harder to see. Man. I had so much to say that it was impossible to decide how I should say it all. I settled with just saying what I felt like at the time.

Sora's house never looked so magnificent than at the moment I arrived. I gulped my nervousness away and pushed the doorbell. I waited, and as I waited, the feeling of running away became very appealing. My legs tingled with the thought. Then I panicked when I saw the door opening. What if it was Sora?? I turned around but before I could take off I heard, "Kairi?" That didn't sound like Sora. I turned back around slowly and saw that it was Olette smiling happily.

"Hey Olette. I thought you were leaving for Twilight Town…," I said. She nodded.

"I am tomorrow. But today I decided to spend some quality time with my beau. Are you here to visit?" I nodded lamely, "Well, come on in outta the cold!" She pulled me inside forcefully and closed the door behind me.

I was a bit dumbfounded and didn't recognize the house for a moment. Given, I knew every nook and cranny though because my mother wouldn't let Sora take Namine anywhere for the first few years they started dating. And again, wherever Namine went, I had to go too. So, they always visited each other's houses, but we went to his house more often than naught because our parents were never around. Olette yanked my coat off and hung it on the nearby hook.

"Who is it?" I heard Roxas call from another room.

"It's Kairi!" Olette answered. She grabbed my hand.

"Come on, we're watching movies in the wreck room." Before I could protest, she pulled me to the room where I saw Roxas sitting on the leather cough along with a little girl. The little girl looked at me curiously and I looked at her the same way. Roxas was brimming with happiness and looked at me with a big grin on his face.

"What's up Kairi? We missed you after we left the party yesterday. Where'd you and Demyx go off to?" I blushed furiously. I saw a strange twinkle in his eye like he knew the answer to that already. Olette rolled her eyes.

"Stay out of other people's business!" She ordered, slapping him upside the head.

"Yea! Nosy!" The little girl mocked. She too hit Roxas in the head and he looked at her angrily.

"Hey! No hitting or I'll make you go upstairs to watch cartoons by yourself!"

"Noo! I'm sorry. I'll be good!" The little girl sat on her butt and looked straight ahead with square shoulders. Roxas grinned.

"That's better!"

"Oh Kairi, this is my little cousin Marlene. I had to baby sit her today because our parents wanted the day out with their friends before leaving. Marlene, this is my friend Kairi, say hello."

"Hello! Nice to meet you," she claimed while still facing the front. I smiled.

"It's nice to meet you too." The girl turned around and smiled at me. She was missing a couple of teeth, but none the less, I thought she was the cutest little thing! Olette looked at the DVD's on the wall.

"Anyway, what do you guys wanna watch? A comedy, a romance…"

"Romance! Romance!" Marlene claimed bouncing up and down. Roxas groaned.

"Noo," he whined.

"Yes! It's two against one! Kairi? It's up to you decide," Olette said. All three of them looked at me expectantly and I chuckled nervously.

"Uh… actually, I'm here to see Sora…," I said.

"Oh _of course_ you are. Good luck with that. He's upstairs in his room," Roxas said with a grin, "He's all alone…" I rolled my eyes. Marlene giggled excitedly and said, "Oooh" before she busted out in a large fit of giggles.

"Okay… Thanks." I turned to leave and I heard them bicker over what movie to watch as I made my way to his room…

I must have stood at the door for at least five minutes but to me, it felt like five hours. My heart was beating in my chest erratically and I felt my face burn. I wanted to knock and my hand was suspended in air as I got ready to, but I never knocked. I couldn't. Why couldn't I? It was only Sora… It was only… Sora…

The door opened and someone collided into me. I nearly fell over, but a pair of strong arms gripped my waist and held me steady. I felt my body against someone else's lean, yet toned torso and an all too familiar scent overwhelmed me. I closed my eyes.

"Sora…," I breathed. I wrapped my arms around his middle in a tight hug and rested my head on his shoulder. I felt him stiffen at my touch, but he didn't move.

"Kairi? What are you doing here?" I could detect slight anger in his voice and I forgot that we still had to make peace with each other. I pulled away, red-faced. I looked at him. His shirt was opened, and his chest was bared. His hair was a little wet and his jeans had water stains on the bottom. I deduced that he just got out the shower and that was why his smell was amplified tenfold. I wanted to play in his wet hair because it wasn't its normal spiky self.

"Sora," I started. I was distracted by his body, and he followed my steady gaze. He blushed and pulled his shirt closed while he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Yeah?" He asked pointedly.

"Umm… I came to… to… apologize, for doubting you… And apparently, you were right about Demyx."

"Heh. Apparently." I cringed at his sarcasm.

"Yea. Stop making this difficult. I'm trying hard." Sora studied me a little more before shrugging and turning his back on me.

"As much as I'd love to hear this, I have a date I have to get ready for so can we please speed this up?" I gasped. Everything escaped me, the things I was feeling, the words I was about to say… everything.

"Huh?" He didn't turn around.

"I said that I have a date Kairi." The words registered but I didn't want to believe them. How could he move on so quickly?? Hadn't he and Namine just broken up? Hadn't he told me that he had feelings for me?? Tears filled my eyes. How could he? How could he make a fool of me this way?

"You… you bastard! I hope your date knows just what she's getting into!" Sora chuckled and looked at me with a grin on his face.

"I'd imagine so. Why else would she want to go out with me? And why else would she be standing here right now?" I frowned.

"You ass hole! I hope you rot in the deepest… shit…!" I was so angry that I couldn't get my wording right so I settled for stomping angrily and turning away from him to leave. He grabbed my arm and spun me back around.

"Let go of me!" I ordered.

"Kairi. Are you that dense? You have no idea who I'm talking about do you? And yet you still get angry?" I tried to pull my arm away but his grip only increased with every attempt.

"Kairi. You silly little girl, I'm talking about _you_! Didn't you hear me when I said 'why else would she be standing here _right now_'? I mean, who else is standing here, _right now_ Kairi that I could go on a date with?" My eyes narrowed and I felt my whole face burn from shame.

"Oh…," I muttered. He smiled.

"At least you know that a lot of other girls like me enough to pose a threat," he claimed arrogantly.

"Please. Who could possibly want someone with such a conceited attitude like that?" He pulled me closer and dipped his head. I felt his breath against my lips and my eyes fluttered closed instinctively.

"You," he whispered before kissing me. I nearly melted and my knees buckled. Sora held me against him with an arm wrapped around my waist. He used one of his masculine hands to hold my head in place has he kissed me. His fingers were entangled in my hair and he gently pulled at it. He couldn't seem to hold me close enough and so he backed me up into the hall wall where he pushed against me as much as possible. I felt his toned stomach and chest through the fabric of my clothing. I fondly stroked his chest. He bristled at my touch and moaned with content. He stopped kissing my mouth and planted moist, hot kisses on my neck. My hands traveled downward from his abs to his stomach. He inhaled a quick breath and stopped kissing me in order to look at me. We looked at each other for confirmation. Did we really want to do this? In answer, he picked me up and carried me to his room (which I gotta say was pretty clean considering the fact that he and Roxas shared it). After he laid me down on his bed, he shut the door and locked it. I watched him and when he looked at me with a tender gaze, a warm fuzzy feeling filled me.

"Sora…"

"Kairi I've waited a long, long time for this," he said.

He wasn't as forceful as Demyx had been, but instead he took his time. It was romantic actually. Sora treated each part of my body like it was something precious. He pulled my shirt over my head and I blushed. I didn't wear a one of my cuter bras. I was wearing a plain white one. I tried to cover myself up, but Sora stopped me. He pulled me close and whispered in my ear, "You're beautiful." My heart fluttered in my chest and I kissed him. He was surprised by my sudden take charge attitude but he quickly got over his shock and returned the kiss. I was so hot. I felt like my body was on fire. The feeling of his smooth skin against mine gave me butterflies. When he pressed his lips on my cleavage, a shiver went up my spine and I shivered. He smiled and proceeded to kiss my abdomen, pausing at my navel. He dipped his tongue in it and it was hot and wet. My back arched unexpectedly and Sora smiled seductively. He trailed his tongue backwards until he reached my breasts and he pulled my bra down, exposing one boob. I gasped and moved to cover it back up but Sora laid on top of me and pinned my arms above my head. He began using his tongue to lick at my hardened nipple and I moaned loudly. It felt so good. He continued to flick his tongue at it and my back arched again. He used his unoccupied hand to hold the small of my back so that I was up against him. His breathing picked up I noticed. I also noticed that somewhere along the way I had started panting myself. When he took my nipple between his teeth and nibbled it, I started crying out despite myself. My crying aroused him even more and he stopped in order to suck. I could barely stand it. I bit my lip to stop from screaming and closed my eyes tight. Then suddenly he stopped.

"S… Sora?" He looked at me and his eyes were dark with passion. He used his one hand to unclasp my bra completely and he threw it to the floor. He continued to watch me as he went back down and gently he touched his tongue to my other breast. The slightest touch caused me to moan from anticipation. I smiled and he proceeded to give my other boob the same treatment. He used his hand and messaged the other one. I cried out again and used my hands to position his head just the way I wanted it. I grabbed fistfuls of his hair and his mauling on my body seemed to become more intense as my actions frazzled him. He stopped again and I was relieved. I was breathing really hard now and I felt so weak. Sora kissed me on my mouth for a long time. It was sweet. I wrapped my arms around him and he pulled me close. He sucked on my bottom lip; his tongue traced the outline of it. I breathed hotly on his mouth and he groaned. His hand traveled along my waist and then he moved over to the button of my low ride jeans. I stopped kissing him and watched as he unbuttoned and unzipped my pants. He used his leg to part mine. I felt a burning there. I wanted him. I wanted him badly, but at the same time I was unsure if I was really ready. I looked at him in the eyes and he looked back at me. Slowly, he pulled my jeans and panties down to my thighs. His hand moved to grope my bare butt. He squeezed and caressed it. I panted and breathed his name. I was hot for him. I wanted him. His moved his hand lower and stuck his index finger and his middle one inside of me. I gasped. It hurt. I squirmed to get away, but he held me close and kissed me. He pulled out and went back in, harder, moving his fingers in a circular motion. I started moaning louder than before. His fingers started moving deeper and then he pulled them out. I wanted them in me. I placed my hand on his and guided his fingers to where I needed them. My hips bucked against my will and his fingers found the place. I cried out and Sora huffed as he moved his fingers faster and harder. My hips bucked again and my back arched. He pulled me closer and he started sucking on my boob again. I could feel the burning in my stomach grow and I could feel myself start to clench up around his fingers. I clenched more and more, pulling his fingers deeper and deeper until screaming was all I was capable of doing. All the hotness left my stomach and my whole body tensed. Finally, all the clenching and tightness stopped. He pulled his fingers out of me and stopped sucking my boob. We breathed for a few moments and didn't move. He looked at me and smiled. I smiled back. I could tell that he wanted more of me, but he was enjoying the fact that he had me at all. I was so drained. I didn't move. So he laid down beside me and pulled me close into his arms.

How had we gone from not speaking, to apologizing, to arguing again, to this? I was amazed. Sora… Since nothing was holding us back anymore, five years of pent up affection was unleashed in the most loving way a man or woman could ever express it. I felt his hard crotch against my hip. It felt so enticing.

"Sora…," I breathed. I wanted it. I wanted it so bad that it ached. He looked at me.

"No… That's it for today… You're tired…" I was burning for him but at the same time I knew he was right. There was no way I could handle sex when I barely handled him fingering me. I pulled my panties back up, but kicked off my constricting jeans before snuggling closer to him. He kissed my forehead and hugged me tightly. He was so warm and I was comfortable in his arms. My eyes drooped and I felt myself nodding off. I couldn't fight sleep any longer and let it claim me.


	19. Chapter 9 Pt II

_**N/A:** _YAY! An update. I know they've been a little nonexsistent as of late and I really have no sufficient excuse as to why that is. Just know that life is full of... (Complete the statement for yourself). Anyway, enjoy and as always, review!_**

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**_Chapter 9: Everyone Gets Their Just Desserts_**

_**Part II: Justice in terms of the Exes/ Walking in the Dawn**_

"Shouldn't you be getting dressed?"

"Why? I don't wanna go home yet!" I whined. Sora gave me a look.

"Who said I was gonna take you home? We still have to go on that date that I was talkin' about earlier. Remember?" Right. I quirked an eye brow inquiringly.

"Where are we going all of a sudden? I mean, Sora. You realize that this is all happening pretty fast don't you? I mean. I _just_ broke up with Demyx and you _just_ broke up with Namine'. Shouldn't we… I don't know. _Not_ enjoy this time together out of respect for our past relationships? I feel kinda guilty being happy here with you while they're sitting around sulking in misery." Sora thought about this.

"Well… I don't want the date to be ruined because you feel bad… I guess I could postpone it until later… But… I've got practice in the morning and games the whole week… I don't know how long later is going to be." Wow. He was really considering this.

"Uh Sora. Don't worry about it. We got all the time in the world." He nodded.

"Yeah…" He looked at me a little bit longer before reaching over and rubbing his hand through my tangled hair. I leaned into his touch and closed my eyes when his hand cupped my face lovingly. I couldn't believe how happy I was. I couldn't believe that Sora and I were together and it was okay. I couldn't believe how such a simple touch could provoke all this emotion within me. He used his other hand to push some hair out of my eyes. I wondered if he could tell how he was affecting me. I wondered if he was feeling the same I was. Something told me that the answers to my inquiries were highly in my favor.

"Kairi…," he breathed, "It's weird isn't it? Being here like this? I mean… I was so angry when I saw you and Demyx together. I didn't think I could ever forgive you because it hurt so bad…" I kissed his hand and then laid my own on his as I slid closer to him to feel his warmth. By now, Sora had given me one of his shirts to wear and it hung off of me like a drape, while he was in a pair of boxers.

"I know… I hadn't realized just how much I truly cared about you until today…"

"I've cared about you a long time Kairi. A long… long time…" I felt butterflies in my stomach when he kissed my head and lingered there like he was absorbing me.

"Why didn't you just say something Sora? Why did you choose to use Namine' that way?"

"Because… I was stupid Kairi. Plus I wasn't really using Namine'. I care about her… but it's not the same. And you scared me."

"Wow. Now you're starting to sound like Demyx," I noticed after I remembered the time when Demyx and I first "met". He had called me unapproachable and I had become aware of what an outsider I truly was. I heard a low growl rumble in Sora's throat and I looked at him curiously.

"Don't do that," he hissed.

"What?"

"Compare me to that… guy…"

"Sora. Come on. You can't really hate him that much right? I mean, you guys play on the same team."

"I hate him." I could see this conversation was getting us no where.

"Look Sora…" Before I could finish my sentence, there was a knock on the door.

"Sora! There's a phone call for you!" I felt my face turn a million shades of red when I heard and recognized the voice and Sora shared the same crimson tones on his face.

"Okay mom! I'll take it in here!"

"What? Okay… Whatever." I heard Mrs. Leonhart's gentle footfalls as she left the door and my tense muscles relaxed. As Sora proceeded to find his phone, I wondered to myself silently about my reaction. Was it wrong to be seen here with Sora after all? Why did I feel guilty? Given, children don't usually feel comfortable sharing that kind of information with their parents but…

"Larxene? Hey what's up?" I felt my stomach flip around and sat up. I watched Sora but his back was to me.

"Huh? Oh. You heard huh? Namine' just 'let it slip' like that right? Whatever… Yeah I guess it is true. We're broken up… I know. She already told me about her and Riku. No… No I can't say that I'd expected that at all. I mean… He's my best friend." Sora got up and something in his tone changed. He began pacing the room angrily, but a somber look was etched into his handsome facial features. His usually bright eyes even took on a misty look. I wanted to comfort him, to show him that everything was alright. I mean, he had me after all. I felt the buzz of our post love making slowly disintegrate the longer he stayed on the phone with Larxene and my attitude shifted to anger. How dare she call and interrupt like this?

"Well duh I'm pissed! I mean what if you're best friend was sleeping with your girlfriend behind your back? You'd be mad too! … You know what I mean! … No I haven't talked to him yet and I'm giving myself time to cool down before I have to… Hm? Uh… No. You don't need to come over. I've already got someone to cheer me up… Who? Well… that's…" I sprung up from the mattress, the bed springs squeaking happily without the added weight on them, and wrestled the phone from his hand. I accidentally pressed the button to hang up on Larxene during the struggle, but I didn't feel guilty. She deserved it for ruining our time together anyway. Sora gave me a bewildered look and I looked at my feet, finding them more appealing than meeting his intense gaze.

"Kairi? What are you doing?" He asked.

"Don't… tell anyone about this Sora… Not yet." A bone chilling hush fell between us as Sora contemplated my words. I bit my bottom lip, silently wishing I had the power to turn back time so I could once again be fuzzy headed with love on the brain.

After hearing about Namine' and Riku and the conversation about Demyx, I realized that things weren't all black and white. Things were complicated. Besides, I was starting to worry about us, Sora and me, now. I mean, what did the development of our relationship mean for our lives? Had we'd gotten physical too fast? That made me think of Namine' and Riku's relationship. Riku knew he loved Namine', but at the same time he didn't know any other way to express himself than through sex, which Namine' didn't argue with of course. But it had confused her and made her think that their relationship was just sexual even though she knew that it had evolved over time. I didn't want there to be any misgivings between Sora and me. Sure I loved him. I mean, I cared about him more than anything. But, could I be sure that it was true? I was just a kid anyway, and right now, hormones speak louder than common sense. Was I acting on impulse and not feelings? I mean… Demyx almost had me… Ugh! Why think about it now? It was over and done with and I knew I wouldn't change it even if given the chance, so there really was no point in stressing about it.

But there are other things to worry about, such as how to tell my friends about the new development, or how to deal with everyone at school. I mean, this was going to be a big deal. Sora and Namine', the dream couple, split up after six years? And Sora was now going out with Namine's little sister Kairi of all people? I'd be looked down upon and every girl in the high school would be spiteful of me. Not to mention if Larxene found out it would be dangerous… _This,_ being together, was dangerous because Sora was such a people's person. He was like some kind of magnet that people were attracted to. Namine' was the same; only she had people who hated her. Even Sora got along with people he disliked. Maybe being his girlfriend was going to be more of a chore than I thought. I wasn't social. Sure, I'd made a few new acquaintances since the end of first semester, but truth be told, I still hadn't changed. I longed for my anonymity and now I saw that it wouldn't be coming back. Especially since Sora was in the picture. People told him all kinds of things and he'd be tangled up in the midst of it. I didn't want to be like that. Never. But alas, low and behold.

I sat on the edge of the bed as all these thoughts began to take their toll on me. My legs felt like jelly and my stomach was starting to hurt. Sora sat beside me. I still couldn't look at him, which was funny since he was all I ever thought of looking at since I woke-up three hours ago. I felt his long, thick, masculine fingers intertwine between my smaller ones and I welcomed his loose but comforting touch.

"…If you keep all your thoughts bottled up… I won't know what you're thinking… And if I don't know what you're thinking then I can't help you," he said in a whisper. I inhaled a large breath and lay my head on his shoulder. How could I tell him all the horrible things going through my mind in that one moment? How could I tell him that I had some serious doubts about us being able to work as a couple?

"Uh… well… Sora. I don't know how everyone is gonna react to our being together and I don't want to make things difficult for Namine' so…"

"So?" He beckoned.

"So… I think we should keep this a secret from everyone like I said before… It's just better this way I think." I felt him stiffen at my words and another deathly silence fell between us. I felt suffocated, like the walls were closing in and my hearing was gone, so I hopped up and cried, "Sora say something! You make me feel like I did something wrong!" He looked at me and held my gaze pointedly.

"I… I don't know what to say Kairi. Are you ashamed to be with me? Was I not good enough in bed for you? Or is sex the only thing you want?" His words pierced through my heart like a sharp sword. My eyes burned with oncoming tears.

"No Sora! That's not it at all!" He looked away from me.

"Then what's the problem? Everyone's going to find out eventually… Why delay the inevitable? And anyway if we get it over with now then I won't have any drama my senior year and you won't have to deal with people's nagging the last two years of high school." How did he know I was stressing about school? How did he know I wasn't talking about our friends or family members? I mean, my parents would hate Sora if they found out he dismissed Namine' and moved on to me without the slightest compunction.

"That's true but… but… I can't handle all the pressure right now…"

"What pressure Kairi? There's no pressure. I'm not pressuring you to do anything!"

"I'm not talking about you! Oh God!" I slumped in his swiveling desk chair and put my face in my hands. I heard Sora grunt and then in a small voice he said, "Okay Kairi. We'll wait to break the news to everyone…" I looked at him and saw a guilty look on his face.

"Really?"

"Yeah. But if someone asks then I won't deny it Kairi. Don't ask me to either! And I don't see why everyone else matters to you anyway. Everyone doesn't make up this relationship. This is just between you and me." I felt myself blush. He was right. He seemed right about a lot of things. So now I felt stupid.

"Uh… I think I'll go home now…" He gave me a look.

"What? But… I don't want you to go home yet." My stupidity increased when I realized I was feeling stupid for no reason as well as hurting Sora for my lack of confidence. Now I really did have to get out of there.

"Yeah… Okay. I'm leaving." I gathered up my scattered articles of clothing and started to strip out of Sora's extra large white T. I could feel Sora watching me and I got hot but I concentrated on trying to get my underwear back on. I never had this much trouble dressing myself ever. I was clipping my bra, or at least trying to when Sora circled his arms around me and took my hands into his own. His chin rested on my shoulder and he took the bra clasps into his hands where he proceeded to clip them together. Then he pulled the bra back around and fit it properly on me. It would have been damn sexy if I wasn't feeling like a stupid child having to have help getting dressed.

"You piss me off," I hissed hotly. I could practically see a grin forming on his face even though my back was to him.

"And you turn me on," he replied. I elbowed him in the ribs, ignoring the rush of emotion that filled me after hearing his comment, and put my pants on. Then I grabbed my shirt and put that on too. I flipped my hair and looked at Sora who was doubled over in pain.

"Tootles!" I opened his door and darted from his room. Just as I was coming down the stairs, I saw Mrs. Leonhart leaving out the door. Good thing she hadn't seen me, otherwise that would've been one helluva confrontation. Taking the stairs two steps at a time, I reached the bottom and grabbed my coat and put it on. I was almost out the door when someone came up from behind me and slammed the door closed right when I was about to leave.

"Oh! Shit!" I cussed. I turned around and saw Sora frowning at me. He had thrown on his previously worn jeans and shirt and looked really unruly, which forced a smile to form on my lips.

"You look like a train wreck," I said.

"Ha ha. You weren't leaving without saying bye right?"

"I said bye. I said tootles remember?"

"What the hell is tootles besides a complete shit farewell?" A laugh erupted from the pit of my gut and my head rolled back as I laughed at his comment. He took my face into his hands and made me look at him.

"Stop laughing. It wasn't funny…" I snorted a little as the laugh died and frowned at the brunette angrily.

"Don't tell me what's funny and what's not! I'll laugh at whatever I want!"

"And I'll get a proper good bye whenever you leave." He kissed me as a follow up to his previous statement. I sighed and wrapped my arms around his neck, standing slightly on my tippy toes. His arms encircled my middle and he kinda pulled me off the ground some. I broke away and giggled a little as he swung me from side to side.

"You're trying to make me stay…," I said. He rubbed his nose against mine and grinned.

"Guilty!"

"Sora…" Sighing, he reluctantly let me go and I turned around to leave. Sora stood in the doorway watching me leave and then he went back in when I turned the corner that was out of his line of sight. Unbeknownst to me at the time, someone else was watching me too.

When I got home it had already gotten dark and my dad was quick to interrogate me about where I had been all day. I lied saying that I was over at Selphie's house. He was steamed that I hadn't called to let anyone know where I went or let anyone know where I was heading before I left. I just shrugged it off telling him that Namine' knew where I was. I was floating on cloud nine and he wasn't about to bring me back down to his unhappy lowliness on the ground. I got to my room and was welcomed with a surprise. Rikku's things had been moved out and the girl was no where in sight. I left and after checking the rest of the upstairs rooms, I saw that Namine' wasn't home either and neither was my mother. Curious to the whereabouts of the other household members, I called over the banister, "Where's Rikku, mom, and Namine'?" My father's voice came sailing from the kitchen, "Namine' had to drive them to the airport! Apparently, Rikku's father's condition got bad over night and they had to fly over there at the last minute before things got even worse."

"Why didn't you drive them instead?"

"Namine' needs to practice or how else will she be in shape for her driving test? Anyway, I've been left to house duty so come help me cook dinner."

"Uh huh!" I got into my pajamas, feeling that the clothes I had on were still tainted with Sora since his scent still lingered in them. I felt that if I went into my father's presence with them on then he might figure out what I had been doing all day and the experience Sora and I shared would be defiled. As I put on my top, my phone rang and I looked at the caller ID. The number was familiar but I didn't know who it was. I picked the phone up consciously and answered, "Hello?"

"Hello Kairi. Just got back home huh? Just got back from getting your brains fucked outta your skull by Sora huh? You little slut." The voice was raspy and monotonous and I had no idea who it was that I was talking to from that.

"Who the hell is this?" I asked. The fear filling my senses was beginning to gather in my throat and my voice didn't sound nearly as pissed as I wanted it to. I crossed my room to look out my window to see if I couldn't catch someone spying on me. The streets were empty.

"Who do you think? What? Were you expecting your little rendezvous to be conspicuous? You make it so obvious you little tramp! You haven't been broken up for a day and already you're running to Sora. I guess you two make the perfect couple. A regular old dream team. No remorse for anyone. Bitches."

"Demyx? Is this you? Why are you being so…"

"This ain't Demyx. It's a friend and you should count yourself lucky that you don't know who I am cuz when we meet in person you can bet you won't be so fortuitous. Watch your back bitch cuz justice will be served." Fortuitous? Served justice? What the hell? Before I could ask some more questions, I heard a rude click and then the dial tone. Hanging my phone up, I stared at it a little longer before joining my father downstairs.

It was nearly midnight when I finally fell asleep only to be awakened by the muffled sound of my sister's voice an hour later. Groggily, I stared at the wall that separated our rooms as I tried to catch my bearings. Pushing back the covers, I got up and shuffled my way to the wall that I laid my ear against in order to hear her better. She sounded like she was on the verge of crying.

"Why won't you listen to me Riku? Just… listen to me…"

"Why? What could you possibly have to say to me that I haven't already heard?" Riku's voice was hard and emotionless. I concluded that she must be talking to him on the phone and had him on speaker … unless he was actually in her room? Would she be so bold while dad slept right down the hall?

"Riku… I… I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…"

"Yeah? Look it's late Namine'. I have somewhere to be in the morning, so if you don't mind…"

"Riku! Don't go just yet! I… I…"

"What?" Silence.

"… I broke up with Sora."

"… Oh."

"Yeah. Turns out that he had the hots for my little sister the entire time we were going out. I… It hurt so bad…"

"Namine'…"

"Anyway… I… want to see you. Riku… I…"

"Don't… say it Namine'. Just don't." More silence.

"Why? Why won't you come to see me? I thought… that after this… we could finally be together." I heard a low chuckle erupt from Riku but it wasn't from humor. It was from spite.

"In case you haven't heard, I'm with someone else now."

"Ha! Riku you can't be serious! I mean… with Rikku? Come on! She's a kid! A damn child Riku!"

"Funny. She seems to know a lot more than you do for just being a kid as you say. She actually knows what she wants."

"The fuck does that mean? All she knows is that you're hot and you make her panties wet. There's nothing more between you two than that!"

"I'll have you know that not everyone gets into a relationship for sex Namine'. I really like her. Besides, we've had our chance. You wanted Sora remember?"

"… But… there is no Sora now! Now we can be together!"

"No, now you need me as a fucking rebound. Why don't you go to someone else because I'm not putting up with your bullshit anymore!"

"What? Too busy fucking with kids now Riku?"

"Shut the hell up! I'm not twisted like you are! It was a damn mistake, messing around with you. All you're good for is sex." I heard Namine' gulp heavily and her breathing picked up.

"Take… take that back… Take that back right now!"

"What? The truth can't be taken back. No matter how much it hurts."

"You… You bastard! You said you loved me! You said you loved me!! I… I thought that you loved me… But no… I'm… just… trash… I'm just a good lay…"

"Namine'… I… I didn't mean…"

"Shut the fuck up! Just shut-up!" I heard things being thrown inside the room and Namine' had started crying profusely.

"NAMINE'! Wait! You can't get mad at me! I wanted to be with you! I waited so long for you and now that I've finally realized we weren't gonna happen, you decide that you want me in your life because it's a convenience. You don't even care about me Namine'! You just need someone so you can feel wanted! Needed! And I can't give that to you because I don't want to be hurt again…" For a while the only sound I could hear was my sister crying and sniffling then in a shaking voice she whispered hoarsely, "So… that's it then… We… aren't going to happen…?"

"… No. We aren't. And I'm sorry about all this shit you're going through. But remember, you reap what you sow. That day… when you chose Sora that was the choice you made and now you have to deal with the consequences."

"… I… I can't… can't believe this. You… you really don't care… I… I…"

"Stop being so melodramatic. Shit… what did you expect? That I'd come running to you with opened arms? Fat chance. I learned my lesson once. And once is enough."

"… Ri…ku… I… I'm so… sorry… I… ne… never meant to hurt you… I… I… love you… so much… so much… But… if we can't be together… then… I have… no choice…"

"Namine'? What the hell are you talking about?"

"Good-bye Riku. You won't ever have to worry about me… again…"

"Huh? Namine'! Wait!" Before Riku could say another word Namine' hung up the phone. She was crying again and I couldn't stand it anymore. I opened the door that connected our rooms together and ran to my sister. She was balled up in a corner. The room was a mess. She had really done a number on the place. Namine' looked at me with swollen eyes and a sad smile.

"Kairi…" I got down on my knees and pulled her close. I held onto her tightly, trying to protect her from all the pain she was being dealt; trying to shield her vulnerability in that moment. She cried into my shoulder and I shushed her as I stroked her back soothingly as I fought back tears of my own.

How could he? Not after all that they'd been through. Not after he threatened to tell her when he found out what Sora and I were doing. Not after he told her that he loved her.

We stayed hugged up in the corner for what seemed like an eternity. The moon's faint silver glow had turned into the soft golden rays of the early morning sun that glistened through Namine's opened window and we were still in an embrace.

"… Am I lovable Kairi…?" Namine's voice seemed alien because we had been silent for so long. I rubbed my hand through her hair affectionately.

"Of course you are. I love you. Riku's just an ass wipe." Namine' laughed a little bit.

"Why can't you ever mind your own business Kairi?" I shrugged and smiled. There really was no explanation for my meddlesomeness. I justify my bad habits by saying that I'm just a nosy person. It sounds better than claiming that I'm a magnet for disaster. Sighing heavily, Namine' adjusted her position so she could look out the window better. I watched her and the mellow expression that she had on her face reminded me of a child. A lost child that was trying to find her place but was caught in a go-between like these early morning hours when the moon is setting and the sun is rising. There's no place for either of them to be in right now. But soon the sun will rise and will dominate the sky.

"Kairi… I've got to get away. If just for a little while… I've got to go…," she said slowly. I tightened my hold on her.

"Let me come with you…"

"No. I want to be by myself. Besides, it seems as though that's the way I always end up…"

"That's not true! You have me!" Namine' smiled and hugged me.

"Thank-you…"

"I'll always be here. I'll always be your sister."

"I know…" We broke apart and just stared at one another. Namine' smiled softly and then touched my cheek gently. Her hand was cold.

"Namine' please don't go. What if something happens to you?"

"I can handle myself. I ought to know a thing or two about that anyway… being that I'm such a glutton for punishment. I just really need this right now. I'll be back before the second semester of school starts up. Promise." Her mind was set. I couldn't change it. She stood and I noticed for the first time that she was fully dressed and a fully packed duffle bag sat a few feet away.

"You've been planning this?" I inquired. Namine' nodded.

"Originally, I wanted it to be a getaway with Riku. But that's not happening… Anyway, this is what you're going to tell dad. You're going to tell him that I'm interning at some modeling agency or something along those lines. Okay? After all, they never really asked what I planned to be doing this winter break so they should buy it. If not… it won't matter. Because I'll be long gone." Namine' grabbed her bag and shouldered it expertly. She grinned at me then gave me the peace sign.

"Catch ya later sis. Give my love to everyone else for me." I watched her go to the window and open it. Taking one last look at me she smiled then climbed down. I went to the window and watched her leave. After she managed to scale the house, she strutted confidently down the street. Everything was silent and the rising sun seemed to focus all it's radiance on my retreating sister because for a moment she seemed to be glowing brilliantly in the soft hues of the retiring dawn.


	20. Chapter 10 Pt I

_**Chapter 10: New Challenges More Trouble**_

_**Part I: Surprise. Surprise.**_

I missed her already.

With mom and Rikku out of town and dad at work, I was at home all alone. It was an overwhelming feeling; an unsettling feeling. I could be with Sora, but he was at Blitzball practice preparing for the game later on. I couldn't go without seeing Demyx, and to be quite frank I was almost scared to leave the house since that phone call the other night that regarded my ex. I found myself being extra precocious by looking out the windows every few minutes or so just to make sure I wasn't being spied on.

I needed Namine'. I had never been alone before. And even when our parents were barely an influence in our lives, it was never me alone; it was Namine' and me. I wondered where she was. What she was doing. Where had she been planning on going anyway? I wished I could be as daring as her and runaway from home. Luckily my dad believed me when I told him that Namine' was out visiting some college and had simply forgotten to tell him because her mind was so wrapped around Sora. I shouldn't have mentioned Sora because now my dad hates him even more. So even if I did wise up and decide to tell my parents that I was dating Sora, they wouldn't approve.

Silence. I had turned the TV on but there was nothing on so it went back off. Now it was just me in some giant empty house. It didn't even feel like a home. I didn't have to go baby-sit for another six hours. All my friends were out of town. My boyfriend was busy. My sister was gone. And my parents were too busy for me. My mind was about to implode from all the nothingness around me, so I decided to go out.

It was exceptionally warm today being in mid December that is. I looked at the sun as it made its way to the noon position up high in the middle of the sky. I smiled. Maybe Namine' found her a place as well. My feet carried me to the inner city. And before I knew where my destination was, I stopped in front of a store and looked in a window. It was a clothing store and the clothes were name brand and expensive. The little Christmas themed nightgown in the store window caught my eye and I had to admit that it was lovely. Suddenly I wondered if we'd all be home for Christmas. My stomach turned as I guessed that I'd be spending it alone and then I focused back on the store. My mouth dropped when I saw Fujin posing in a sexy, sleek red dress. She didn't notice me, so I went in to get a better look.

"Whoo hoo! Look at you!" I cried. Fujin saw me creep up on her in the mirror and then she turned around to look at me. Her face matched the deep crimson of her gown.

"Wha… What are you doing here?" I've never seen her so flustered, so I reveled in it.

"I think the real question is why are you here and why are you wearing that dress? Me-yow!" Fujin frowned and looked back into the mirror.

"Shut your mouth! It's not like I'm wearing it because I want to." Before I could inquire as to why she was wearing the dress if she didn't want to be wearing it, a tall lady with long silky ebony hair entered and smiled at me.

"Oh! Fujin! Who is this? A friend of yours?" At hearing the lady's voice, Fujin's whole attitude changed and she nodded.

"She's my friend Kairi…" The lady seemed to become even livelier at hearing Fujin's answer and she took one of my hands into her own fair and slender ones.

"Oh how wonderful! It's a pleasure to meet you Kairi! Hm… Kairi. That's a lovely name!"

"Uh… thanks…?" I looked at Fujin for help but Fujin just looked at her feet bashfully. Bashfully? What in the hell? Fujin actually got bashful?

"My, my... The girl is just as lovely as her name… yes…," the woman mumbled to herself as she spun me around, "She would make another good model…"

"Ugh uh! Edea! Don't you have to uh catalog the uh ideal clothing for the uh best looks this holiday season?" Fujin interrupted. The woman, Edea clasped her face in her hands and a look of pure horror filled her elegant facial features.

"I totally forgot about that! Thank you Fujin. You're such a doll!" With that said, the tall lady left us. Fujin and I watched her tall frame disappear into an elevator then out of sight before looking at one another.

"Who was that Fujin?"

"… My godmother…"

"Ruh… really? She's beautiful…"

"Yeah… I know. Anyway, to answer your question, I'm done up like this because this volunteer group I'm in is trying to raise money for the old folk's home and we're doing it through an auction. The girls in the group have agreed to go on dates with the highest bidders. That includes me. So I came to my godmother for help since she runs this shop." I looked at my friend incredulously. Fujin tried to avoid my gaze by playing with some lace on her dress.

"Wow. No wonder you didn't want to tell us what you were doing over break. Who knew you were so kind hearted?"

"I'm not. So if you keep making fun of me, I'll kick your ass as soon as I'm outta this damn dress." I backed up instinctively.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. It's just kinda a shock. I thought you'd be outta town like everyone else."

"Unfortunately no. Unlike everyone else, I've got work to do over vacation. Anyway, to change the subject, I heard you and Demyx split up." I sighed and nodded sadly. I still couldn't dismiss the guilty feeling I had in my gut nor the fear that crawled up my spine whenever I remembered that phone call.

"Yeah… we did…," I mumbled. Fujin smirked.

"So it's true then… I also heard you and Sora slept together. Is that true too?" I gasped and felt my face heat up. I looked at Fujin and she giggled a little seemingly finding my reaction humorous. My heart was beating so fast that I thought the strain would make it explode in my chest. All the extra blood was rushing to my face so I knew I was as red as a tomato and by the look on Fujin's face, the blushing let her know all that she needed to.

"I can't believe it. You dog! You really slept with Sora! How was he? Good?" I was still trying to grasp the fact that Fujin knew about us so when I tried to answer the words came out in a slurred and jumbled up mess.

"Calm down Kairi. You're not the first person to have sex in the entire world," the girl said easily as she gathered her skirts and walked into a nearby dressing room. I followed her and slumped into a chair beside her door.

"How… how did you find out?" I asked hesitantly.

"Olette told me. She said you guys were at it for a good while. I didn't believe her though… but now I see she was telling the truth." I had completely forgotten that Olette and Roxas were there! How embarrassing! To think, I asked that it remained under wraps and already my two best friends knew about it all because I carelessly forgot that there were other people in the house! So who else knows??

"Fujin! Who else did Olette tell?" I cried. Fujin came out dressed in a pure white dress with lacy trim. I liked it.

"No one as far as I know. I think I'm the only one. Why do you sound so flustered Kairi? We're only your friends. We won't use this knowledge to our advantage or anything like that."

"I… I know… it's just… If anyone else finds out…" I didn't want to think about it. I already got one threatening phone call. I could only imagine how everyone else would react to the news. Fujin posed in the mirror and studied herself, but after she heard my weary tone, she focused her attention back on me.

"Kairi. Don't worry. We won't tell anyone else if you don't want us to. We're not blabber mouths. Have a little more faith in your friends. Or don't have sex in a place where other people are present. Especially if one of those people is your friend."

"Okay… okay… Now I feel better… But promise you won't say anything to anyone else anyway. Promise?"

"I guess."

"Fujin!"

"Yeah, yeah. Fine, okay. I promise."

"Thank-you." Fujin went back into the changing room and I heard her shuffle through more clothing. My nerves were still on edge though and I didn't think I would be relaxing any time soon.

"So, what does this mean for you two now?"

"… Well… We're a couple." Fujin poked her head out from behind the door to gape at me.

"How is that possible when he goes out with your sister?"

"They… broke up…" Fujin's mouth dropped and she gasped with surprise.

"No way! Really?? What happened? It was that party wasn't it? A lot of scandalous shit was going on then. It was after you two made out wasn't it?" I nodded.

"Kinda… It had something to do with that…" Fujin shook her head and disappeared behind the door again.

"Wow… Who knew you were such a bad ass Kairi? Coodles to you my friend."

"… Eh… thanks I guess…"

"Anyway, if you're not doing anything, I suggest you get out of here. It's for your own safety cuz believe me, Edea will waste no time in turning you into a humanoid mannequin if you stay here any longer and trust me, it is no fun whatsoever. I'll catch up with you when I'm done here okay?"

"Okay. See you later Fujin."

"Buh-bye buddy." I got up and left the shop. I didn't have anything else to do but walk around some more, but I couldn't do it because I was so distracted by this new development. So many people knew about us already. I didn't know how to handle it. I wanted to see Sora. I needed to talk to him. But I didn't want to see Demyx… My desire to talk with Sora was greater than my fear of seeing Demyx and so I hurried to the stadium where the boys were practicing.

What would I say when I saw him? When my mind drew a blank on the subject I decided that I would find the right words when I was faced with the problem. The stadium smelled like boy. It was musky and humid. I took a seat on the bench nearest the water dome and watched the team run through plays with athletic passion. Sora saw me and he smiled brightly. His smile made my heart race and I smiled back at him. Maybe it wouldn't be so hard after all. That thought was quickly dismissed when Sora called time out and I saw the pissed expression on Demyx's face. All the boys jumped out of the water and Sora wasted no time in running over towards me. He lifted me up and spun me around merrily. I giggled a little, but when I saw the looks his teammates were giving us, I ordered him to put me down. When he did, I took a step away from him embarrassedly.

"What's up with you Kairi?" He asked. I heard a little edge in his tone meaning that he wasn't oblivious to the fact that I was trying to create some distance between us. I was too ashamed to make eye contact with him.

"Uh… I… I wanted to talk to you…," I stuttered.

"Well. Okay. Let's talk. Come on." He took me by the hand but I pulled away from him.

"Uh… no… you're busy… I'll talk to you later…"

"… You mean to tell me that you came all the way here just to tell me that you wanted to talk to me… later?" I could hear the frustration in his sarcastic response and I couldn't blame him for getting frustrated. I was getting irritated at myself really. I _had_ come to talk hadn't I? Why couldn't we talk? When I felt the other five pairs of eyes on me, I remembered why I couldn't talk to him.

"Sora…," I started, but I stopped. I couldn't think of anything to say. I managed to pull my eyes away from the ground long enough to look into my boyfriend's face. His expression wasn't one of anger to match his tone. It was a look of remorse.

"Kairi. It's okay. We can talk later if that's what you want." I felt my heart shatter.

"Sora… I'm… sorry…" He nodded but then shook his head slowly like he didn't completely agree with what he was agreeing to. Flashing me a quick reassuring grin, he turned his back to me and returned to his team. As the distance grew between us, my heart seemed to sink lower and lower into the bowels of my body until finally it felt like it dropped to the ground. I sat back in my seat on the verge of tears. The team still watched me curiously, but none of them said anything to me and no one asked Sora about what they had just seen. Demyx looked back and forth between us angrily. I couldn't stand being there anymore, so I got up and began to leave. On my way back up the stands, I looked back at Sora and saw that he was watching me too. Our eyes stayed locked for what seemed like a long time and then Sora returned his attention to his team. I exited the stadium but waited outside for him.

I couldn't believe how foolish I was. I had gotten cold feet just because a couple of people were watching us. I was so consumed with fear about what they were thinking that I didn't even want to be seen with Sora. He had been so happy to see me too and I just disregarded his feelings without the slightest compunction. My poor Sora. Maybe I didn't deserve him after all.

When the team finally came out, I heard them talking loudly in excited voices. They were fully dress and banded together so tightly I could barely see Sora in the midst of them. But when I did, I saw how happy he was and lost the nerve to call out to him. He was happy with them. All I did was hurt him. I turned away from the group and then started to walk away. I was so stupid. I mean I was really stupid. Why couldn't I do anything right? Sora deserved better. So much better. I hadn't notice anyone come up behind me, and when I had, it was too late. The person had me by the waist and his or her grip was tight around my abdomen.

"Hey!" I yelled. The person's grip loosened and I whirled around and saw Sora smiling at me playfully. I blushed and looked away from him.

"Oh. I didn't know it was you…"

"Surprised you didn't I? Anyway, come on Kairi." He took me by the hand and I didn't pull away from him even when I saw some of the team looking at us curiously. This time I let him lead me away from the prying eyes.

He took me to the park where a lot of other couples were hanging out. I even saw a couple of families there. I felt happy as we walked the chrysanthemum bordered trail of the park hand in hand. A part of me felt foolish though for being embarrassed to be seen with Sora earlier. What was the matter with me? Sora tightened his grip on my hand and took me into a secret surrounding. There was a solitary bench surrounded by a bunch of trees that still had their leaves on them and the bench was unoccupied. And out of sight. Sora sat down, pulling me down next to him. The space was lovely with the sun's rays shining through the opening in the trees' branches which created star-like patterns on the ground. It was kinda chilly though since the trees provided shade and it wasn't a sizzly hot day. So I cuddled closer to Sora and let him wrap an arm around me to pull me into a warm embrace.

"I'm glad you waited for me… What is it you want to talk about?" I hugged him back and rested my head on his chest. I heard his heart pumping there. I listened to it and smiled happily when I realized it was beating in sync with my own. I couldn't tell him that I was embarrassed that people had found out about us. I couldn't tell him that one of Demyx's affiliates was threatening me. I couldn't tell him that I was scared. Not now. Not in this perfect moment. Why couldn't everything stay this wonderful?

"…I'm sorry Sora… about earlier… I just… panicked," I offered lamely. I heard him sigh and he pulled away from me as though I had offended him.

"Oh… yeah… Don't worry about it. I forgot that you don't want anyone else to know…" I gripped his shirt forcefully within my fist subconsciously when I heard the distinct sound of pain oozing from his words. He must've thought that I didn't want people knowing about us because I was ashamed or something. And I was… but… It wasn't because of him or anything. In all actuality, there really was no reason to be ashamed. After all, he made me happy. So very happy...

"I'm not… ashamed of us Sora… I'm not… Besides it's not like people don't already know. I bet your team is already gossiping about us by now. And Olette told Fujin about us because she… heard us… in your room…" I heard Sora chuckle a little and my tenseness melted slightly.

"Right. Roxas was giving me hell about it. No doubt that he's said something already. I knew it wouldn't matter if we told people or not. They're bound to find out. Especially since I don't plan on keeping it a secret… unless… you want me to…" It wasn't hard to miss the continual pain in his voice as he spoke. My idea seemed to be hurting him more than any of the people who knew about us were hurting our relationship (which they weren't). I couldn't stand it. There was no reason why I shouldn't brag about the fact that Sora and I were together. After all, he was so happy to have me in his life now and he didn't care who knew it, but I was actually ashamed… embarrassed. No. I couldn't hurt him anymore. There was nothing wrong with us being together so why did it matter if others knew about it?

"I don't want to hurt you anymore Sora. So I don't care. As long as it doesn't affect our relationship, I don't care about what other people think about us…" I heard Sora's breathing hitch in its steady pace and I looked at him then. A red tinge stained his tanned cheeks and he looked at me with such a sweet expression on his face. It was a mixture of surprise and happiness. Smiling, I cupped his face lovingly before bringing it down to meet mine. Then I used my tongue to part his lips and I tongued him passionately in a sweet kiss. Sora moaned and pulled me closer. I felt his body quiver beneath me in his want for closeness, and I decided to slip into his lap by placing both legs on either side of his hips. Sora stroked my body with roaming hands and I bristled when his fingers found delicate parts. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pushed myself up against him tauntingly, daring him to take as much of me as he wanted. Sora grunted a little in his throat and he held me tightly by the waist, sinking his finger tips into my flesh hungrily. I took my tongue out of his mouth and bit his bottom lip temptingly.

"Kairi…," he breathed against my mouth as he spoke, "I love you…" I smiled and pulled away from him in order to study his face which was slightly flushed a soft red color. His lips had turned rosy as well from my assault. I imagined that I shared the same details on my features.

"I know…," I said gently and I kissed his swollen lips one more time. Then I brought my forehead down to meet his and rested my hands on his chest. Sora took my hands into his own and cradled them lovingly as he nuzzled my neck sweetly.

We stayed like that for a while and I know countless passersby had seen us from the gaps in the small cove of trees, but I didn't care. I was with Sora and I was happy.

"Hey… Kairi. I just realized something," Sora said in a raspy voice like he had nearly fallen asleep. I pulled away to look into his face.

"What?" His cerulean eyes were concentrated on my neck and I looked down. Demyx's necklace was hanging there, glittering eerily in the sun's light. A feeling of disbelief filled me.

"Oh shit…," I cussed before removing the necklace forcefully from my neck by yanking the chain. Sora's eyes locked with mine and he paused to take a moment to form his words.

"… You've been wearing that thing for a while now. Was it a present from someone?" I almost regretted having to answer him.

"Yeah… Demyx…" An angry scowl flickered across Sora's face and I guiltily stuffed the jewelry in my coat pocket.

"Why do you still have that thing?"

"I forgot about it honestly… Don't worry. I'm not keeping it around because I miss him or anything… In fact, I'll… return it to him…" Now how to exactly go about doing so? I had no idea.

"… You were never embarrassed to be seen with him… or wear whatever he gave you…"

"It was one thing Sora and I forgot about it that's all. It's not important. Not anymore…" To reassure him, I leaned forward and kissed him again then I took his hands and placed them on my heart. I broke away from him to whisper, "I'm yours… and yours alone…" Sora looked back at me with those big blue eyes that seemed to see into the deepest depths of my soul. Good thing to because he'd see that I was sincere to the edges of my being. He smiled a little and hugged me close, squeezing me tightly.

When we finally got up, Sora and I walked back to the stadium to get Sora's car. From afar it looked fine. The same luxurious black BMW that Sora cruised around in proudly for the last year and a half. The car that drove Namine' and sometimes me back forth to school or anywhere else we wanted to go. But up close, a nasty scratch that ran along the driver's side of the vehicle. Sora's mouth dropped and he hesitantly touched a finger to the ruined paint job. I covered my mouth with both hands since it was wide open and I didn't want anything to fly in.


	21. Chapter 10 Pt II

_**Part II: Simplicity where art thou?**_

"What the fuck is this?? I haven't even finished paying for it yet!! I mean, this isn't fucking _paid_ _off_ yet! It's still got three more years! Look at this!"

"I'm looking Sora. Believe me. I'm looking…" Sora seemed to be going completely ballistic. But I couldn't blame him. That car cost a pretty penny.

"Do you think my insurance will cover this…? Oh shit. Got a dent in the damn hood too! What else got fucked up??" My boyfriend did a quick inspection of his car, which luckily didn't show anymore signs of adulteration, before whipping out his cell phone and dialing a number. He kicked at the ground angrily before saying, "Hello? Yeah, guess what. I just got fucked over!"

"Can you please watch your language…?" Sora looked at me. I felt myself blush. Since when had I become a saint? I mean, I had the talk of a sailor. Maybe it was because all his cussing was making me nervous.

"Yeah. Right. You try watching your mouth when your eighty-five thousand dollar car gets screwed up… Huh? No. I was talking to my girlfriend… No… It's not Namine'…" He turned his back on me and kept talking into his phone. Trying to push away the bubbly feeling in my gut from when he called me his girlfriend, I hunched down to get a better look at the damage. The scratch wasn't as sever as the dent in the hood. That dent looked like it was created when something really big and heavy crashed into the car. And if that was the case, then it must have been a real bitch to carry around. I'm guessing that it was being carried around since I saw no such device lying around anywhere. So the person that pulled this off must be really strong. Either that or it's more than one person… Worry spread through me like a giant wave at that sudden realization. Was it Demyx and his little friend?

I stood back up and looked at Sora. He was still trying to explain the situation when he turned back around and looked me. Something on my face made him say, "Uh… look. I'll call you back okay. Something just came up." He hung up the phone and came over to me.

"Kairi? What's wrong? Why are you so pale? It's not that bad. Honest! … Or isn't this about the car?" I shook my head.

"It's… I think I know… who did it…" Sora's face hardened.

"Me too." I wondered if we were close enough that we were on the same wavelength so I asked, "Demyx right?" Sora nodded.

"That bastard… I'll make him pay for this!" His tone worried me slightly and I winced from the severity of it. As unbelievable as it may seem, I still kinda felt sorry for my ex and so I tried to ease Sora's tenseness by saying something to take his mind off of Demyx for a moment.

"Sora… I think… it's not just him but a friend of his too."

"Then both of them are about to be dealt with!" Well. That wasn't the response I was hoping for…

"… Don't you wanna know why I think that?"

"… I guess so. If you think it's important. Either way I mean, they're getting what's coming to them. But go ahead. Explain your theory to me. That way, I can have enough proof against them. Come on. Out with it."

"… The dent is pretty big… Too big for someone alone to do…"

"… Good point. I'm gonna call us a tow truck. Hold tight." He pulled out his phone and proceeded to dial a number. He didn't have to wait long and was already talking a mile a minute into the receiver. I leaned against the car slightly bewildered. I couldn't tell Sora the real reason I thought it was an accomplice. I couldn't tell Sora about the phone call. I didn't want him to get angrier than he was now. And anyway, there was no solid proof that my theories were correct, I mean, after all, they were only theories.

The tow truck smelled liked corn chips and unwashed feet. I snuggled close to Sora to create as much distance between me and the tow truck driver who was by far in even worse condition than his truck. Sora didn't mind, either that or he didn't really notice. He was staring ahead with a blank expression on his face. I could see the fierce anger and hurt swirling around in his eyes and felt oddly responsible for it.

The driver had taken Sora and me to Sora's auto shop where he proceeded to get an estimate for the damage done to his car. The numbers were outrageous and put him in an even worse mood than I was used to seeing him in. We left in a rental that wasn't nearly as nice as Sora's ruined BMW. He drove me to Garnet's house in silence. His jaw was clenched so tightly that it looked painful. How could I tell him that the people who did this to him were only doing this to him because of me? When he finally got to Garnet's house, he pulled into the driveway and turned the engine off. Sora was frowning at nothing and I felt like I owed him some kind of condolence.

"Sora… I'm sorry about you're car. I'm really, really sorry…" He brought in a large, heavy breath and then exhaled loudly.

"By your tone I would think you felt guilty for what happened. Do you feel guilty Kairi?"

"… Yeah…" He snickered.

"Oh man. You're really cute Kairi. Why do you always blame yourself that way? It's okay. It's not your fault. I'm not mad at you okay?"

"But Sora. You don't-'' He caught my lips in his own and cut me off. I tried to pull away but he hugged me to him tighter. Finally I just gave in and let him kiss me. When we broke apart, he tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear affectionately and said, "It's enough that my car got jacked up. I don't need my girl to feel crappy too. Now go baby sit and put a smile on."

"Is smiling your remedy to everything?"

"Yup. Pretty much." Smiling, I exited the car. I watched Sora pull out of the driveway and waved at him as he drove away.

I rang to doorbell and waited. A few seconds later, the door opened and revealed a small girl looking at me with big curious blue eyes. I smiled as best I could given that I was still shaken about the whole Sora's-car-just-got-jacked-up fiasco and said, "Hi, I'm Kairi your babysitter." The girl didn't say anything. She just looked at me.

"Uh… it's kinda cold out here… Can I come in?"

"…"

"…"

"You're ugly." I gasped but before I could say anything, she had turned around and left the door wide open. I took the invitation and went in, closing the door behind me. I was a little angrier than I should have been but that was a rude comment. And in addition to being rude, it wasn't a very smart thing to say. For all this kid knew, I could be one of those abusive babysitters that would kick a kid's ass in less than two seconds because they had given me a funny look. Luckily for her I wasn't. Lucky brat.

"So, have you eaten anything yet?" I asked. After the words left my mouth, I smelt something funny. It smelled like gas. My stomach did a flip and I saw smoke coming from the kitchen.

"Oh Jesus…," I prayed and went in. She'd left a dish cloth on the oven and the burner was still burning. I saw the cloth was the thing that was smoking, having been scorched by the fire coming off the burner. Quickly, I turned off the flame and threw the towel in the sink. The remnants of the rice she had cooked were in the pan she used to cook it and they were burnt, sticking to the pan.

"What the hell? That's not how you cook rice! You boil it in a pot! And don't leave the burner on such a high temperature with a dish towel nearby! You wanna burn the house down or what??" I yelled. I started scraping the rice off the pan furiously and when that was finished I looked up and saw Eiko looking at me sadly.

"I thought I had turned it off…," she claimed in a small voice. I felt guilty for yelling and said, "It's okay. Sorry I yelled…" We were silent and the water from the faucet was the only sound in the room. Eiko sat down at the table and watched me expectantly.

"Ugh… So… I take it you haven't eaten yet. I'll make you something. What do you want to eat?"

"… Some Chinese."

"Okay… Do you guys have the ingredients?"

"You can cook Chinese? But you aren't Chinese!"

"Yeah? No shit. Oops I mean… I'll… I'll just order take out." I went over to the phone and dialed the number of the Chinese shop I constantly ate at. It rang a few times and then I got the familiar voice of Xiang, the person who ran the restaurant.

"Hi Xiang. It's me Kairi."

"Oh? Dea' customer!! What ca' I do fo' you?"

"I'm ordering some… What do you want Eiko?"

"Pizza."

"… That's not Chinese. That's Italian or Greek or whatever. But that definitely isn't Chinese."

"I want pizza!"

"Hewro?"

"Hold on Xiang," I put a hand over the receiver and glared at the twelve year old sitting not even two feet away from me, "They don't have pizza! You said you wanted Chinese!"

"I know! I want _Chinese_ _pizza_!!"

"What the hell is that??" She gave me a look like I was stupid and simply shrugged. I was about to tell her to stop being so damn demanding but I changed my mind because I didn't want her to tell her mother and lose my chance of getting a hundred and eighty- nine dollars. I put took my hand off of the receiver and said, "Uh… Xiang?"

"Yes dea' customer?"

"Can you… make me a large Chinese pizza?"

"Eh?"

"… Er… Chinese… pizza?"

"Eh? Pissa? We make no pissa."

"I know but…"

"…Okay. I make pissa for dea' customer. It take thirty minute. You want delivery?"

"Yes." I gave him the address and hung up. Defeated, I sat at the table with Eiko and we waited for the pizza.

It ended up being forty five minutes and so I got a five dollar discount on the total price. I paid the delivery guy and took the large box from him, closing the door with my foot. I carried the grease stained box to the kitchen and Eiko started jumping up and down excitedly.

"Pizza!!"

"Yeah… pizza. Right…" I sat it down and the girl tore the box open greedily. I looked at the soggy mess with disdain. The doe was sloppy and a lot of meat, cheese, onions, peppers, and other stuff that I couldn't nor wanted to make out were packed on top. I let her try it first because she was younger and if something was wrong with it that made her sick she could get over it faster then me. Ah, so is the gift of being young. She took a big slice, the melting cheese stretching as she pulled, and bit into it. She chewed noisily. Once swallowed the first bite, she smiled not seeming to mind how messy it was and kept on mauling it. I hesitantly tried some and was surprised when it didn't taste as crappy as it looked.

"Good!!" Eiko exclaimed.

"Good," I agreed. After we finished half the box, Eiko went to play with some of her toys. I watched her in amusement. She actually had a soap opera-like story going on. I thought that was pretty cool because I never got into playing with dolls and by the time I was her age, I was done playing with toys altogether. Plus, I never had enough imagination to come up with a story for my toys.

Kids have it so easy what with all their simplicity and innocence. As I watched Garnet's little sister play, I wondered when I started thinking dolls were a waste of time, or when I realized I had time to waste. Kids don't have to rush into anything, no one pushes them, and no one hassles them. The only thing they have to worry about is having fun and eating. It's slightly irritating that the world cradles you comfortingly in a warm embrace for a while until it gets tired of you. Then you're left to fend for yourself in the cold reality that is life. When does childhood end and adulthood begin? I wonder sometimes when the exact point was that my life turned from blissful ignorance to shit. As one would expect, it's not so easy pinpointing that moment. In literature, a coming of age story depicts the moment as the moment when the child becomes aware of his or her mortality. I know I'm mortal and am reminded each day when the bullshit I go through starts to pile high.

And then I see that old people are like kids too. After all life throws at you, in the end you'd rather return to that tranquil state you started in rather than continue. Why is that? What's the point? If life is so redundant and nothing's new, what's the point? When will this end and something new start? What do you have to look for to find it?

I sighed irately and slumped in my seat. To think, I started pondering all this from watching a kid play with dolls. Perhaps it's time for therapy now.

"Hey, can I call you big sis," Eiko asked suddenly. I looked at her to see if she was serious. She was smiling brightly.

"Er… yeah. I guess."

"Good. So now I have two big sisters! Hey, did you know that Garnet really likes you?"

"You don't say…"

"No. She really does! But I don't think she likes you nearly as much as she likes Zidane. I don't know him too well, but if big sis likes him then he must a great person!" I wondered how she had managed to come to that conclusion.

"I guess… Why do you say that?"

"Well… cuz big sis is great and so are you so he must be too!" Wow. How basic.

"Okay. Thanks for saying so."

"Sorry for calling you ugly earlier. I was angry that you were going to be watching me instead of big sis."

"It's alright. No harm done."

"Okay. That's good…" Eiko kept talking and talking and talking and talking and talking. My head was reeling from all the stuff she was talking about. All of it was so simple and pointless that it was nearly incomprehensible. All her childish chatter quickly irritated me.

"Uh. Listen. Maybe you should go to sleep now."

"Huh!? But I'm having fun talking with you!"

"Yeah, yeah. It is fun. But I'm tired so you must be tired too so we need to go to sleep now."

"… Okay. But lemme ask you this one thing!"

"What?"

"Do you have a boyfriend?"

"Sure. Now go to sleep." Eiko pouted a little but trudged off to bed without another word. I relished the silence that had descended since her exit and then I saw the clock. Three hours had passed by so fast. Even though I was technically done, I decided not to leave until someone else came home. I started watching T.V. in Garnet's room to past the time. The idea sleep suddenly seemed more appealing than the crappy sitcom playing on the television so I ended up dozing off. I was awakened three more hours later by a loud crashing sound. When I got up to check it out, I saw Eiko struggling against ropes that were wrapped tightly around her small body.

"Eiko! What the-" Before I could finish, I felt something hard crash into the back of my head. I literally saw stars and crumpled to the floor.

"…had this coming for some time. Don't worry, it'll be over soon." I hadn't heard the first part of the sentence because of the ringing in my ears. I couldn't recognize the voice either. The room started spinning and I felt someone pull my arms behind my back and start wrapping itchy rope around my wrists. My body wouldn't respond and my eyes closed on their own. Then all I saw was darkness.

* * *

A/N: If you ever had to babysit a kid, you know where I'm coming from. Anyway, don't kill me but I just now uh, got reinspired for this story. At I first I was gonna delete it but I changed my mind. So anyway, review please? And if you're pissed that I haven't updated in forever, let me know. I totally deserve it! T.T 


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